China and the West

Renfer, Christian. Considerations of a Swiss monument preservationist during a visit to traditional villages in China : the Shaxi rehabilitation project as an opportunity. In : Along the Great wall : architecture and identity in China and Mongolia. Ericht Lehner, Alexandra Harrer ; Hildegard Sint, Hildegard (eds.). (Vienna : Institute for Comparative Research in Architecture, 2010).
My first contact with monument preservation in China
In the year 2002, I had the opportunity to visit China for the first time, as part of a delegation from the city of Zurich, and was able to take part in discussions with monument preservation experts from the city of Kunming. At that time, already a long-standing concept for retaining the old city was in place and a monument preservation position had been created in the planning department.
Four years later, in October 2006, was my last visit of the city. To my surprise, most areas of the old city had already been destroyed except for the Muslim quarter, where I was able to take the last pictures prior to its destruction. As I do not know anything about the background of this change, I cannot judge the course of events either. However, it is clear that the development and preservation concept were diametrical to each other, which is why the planning which could have brought about a building synthesis between the old city of Kunming and the developing areas was no longer possible. The reality of the city development in Kunming was a real culture shock for me as an experienced preservationist.
A new experience with monument preservation in China - the Shaxi Rehabilitation Project (2000-2006).
If the view of Kunming had been my only experience with monument preservation in China, I would have had a completely wrong picture of the possibilities in this country. Luckily, as a guest of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH), I was allowed to take part in a joint Swiss-Chinese project in the province of Yunnan where a completely different approach to old city retention was taken. After the completion of the planning phase, the results of this project, which was conceptionally an especially successful one, have become visible since 2006 in a first and second realization phase (phase I: 2002-2004, phase II: 2005-2006). I would like to introduce some basic thoughts and illustrate them with some pictures. However, it would be best to visit Shaxi yourself - it is really worth it!
A synopsis of the Shaxi Rehabilitation Project Preliminary Remarks - from Switzerland to China.
In a certain way, the Shaxi Project is a kind of role model for China since there are similar rural cultural landscapes with intact villages and traditional structures in other parts of China which should be retained as complete units and further developed.
In particular, the still intact areas of national minorities show a high rate of destruction in their traditional communities on the basis of an enormous backlog. This destruction is not only visible in large buildings, but also in all of the small additions to the buildings or dwellings, without any consideration in the communities.
For China as a large country in which agriculture, different from European countries, still plays an important role in the economy, it is worthwhile to develop spatial planning with appropriate means. Different from the booming cities of China (to which Kunming belongs) with an overwhelming development, basic planning could be set up with sustainable effects well into the next generations and including a regulated and logical preservation of the overall situation.
As a Swiss monument preservationist, the situation I came upon in the provinces of Yunnan and Guangxi strongly reminded me of the economic and planning stage Switzerland had reached between 1950 and 1960 (before the mechanization of agriculture and the huge construction boom following the fi nancial boom), after 1970 resulting in the implementation of spatial planning covering the entire country. At that time, it was recognized that the last remains of the historical building substance in its traditional context could only be maintained by space planning (i.e. preservation and further development while retaining the overall appearance).
On this basis, in Switzerland, laws were passed which have led to an effective governmental monument preservation system in the cantons since the seventies.
Geographical situation of the Shaxi valley in the province of Yunnan.
Shaxi is located in the west of the Yunnan province, near the Yangtze River (Tiger Leaping Gorge), in Jianchuan County (Dali district), between Lijiang and Dali Old Town. The valley can be reached by car along a lonely lane leading through a protected landscaped area. A very impressive journey indeed.
The Shaxi valley forms a broad funnel surrounded by hills covering an area of about 270 sqm, in which a political community unit with eight villages and ca. 20,000 inhabitants can be found. Shaxi is situated on the old economic route from Yunnan to Tibet (Tea and Horse Caravanning Trail). The area is dominated by the culture of the Bai minority mixed with elements of the Yi minority.
Partner in the Shaxi Project as a basis for an expertise-specific Chinese-Swiss cooperation.
On the Swiss side, there was the Institute for Spatial and Landscape Planning (IRL) of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETHZ) in Zurich which had overall control as the initiator and project author, while on the Chinese side, the following participants joined in the project: the authorities and planning positions of the province of Yunnan and Jianchuan County as well as the local town government of Shaxi, supported by the ministry of Construction in Beijing. The county was responsible for the supervision. The active planning and the first implementation phase (Sideng Market Place) lasted from 2000/01 to 2006.
Financing of the project.
In 2001, the Shaxi valley was included in the list of the 100 most endangered cultural artifacts of the world by the World Monument Endowment Fund and was promised financial support for the project. The costs were divided between Chinese and western partners (e.g. Swiss Federal Institute of Technology with support of the Agency for Development and Cooperation, SDC). In addition, several internationally active foundations and sponsors funded the project. The conceptual part of the Shaxi Project. The above given overview of the problems which were to be addressed in the project resulted in the following subsections:
1. Marketplace restoration (Preservation of the building substance of the historical marketplace and its surroundings in the centrally located Sideng)
2. Village preservation
3. Sustainable valley development (The further economic development of the Shaxi valley with agriculture and mild tourism, preservation of the beauty of the landscape and surrounding spaces in the Shaxi valley, and a soft further development)
4. Ecological sanitation (Improving the sanitation with ecological compatibility)
5. Poverty alleviation (Taking into consideration the requirements of the population)
6. Events and dissemination (Promulgation and activation of the experience, planning, and technical expertise gained in this project)
Goal and potential of the Shaxi Project.
1. Local agriculture should remain an economic resource.
2. The Shaxi valley should promote soft tourism based on culture and landscape.
3. The living standards of the populace should be reached through technical improvements of the living conditions and improvements in the service sector.
The results of the restoration of the Sideng market place in Shaxi.
Sideng is a picturesque village centrally situated on the main river of the valley and can be reached by a beautiful arched bridge. The settlement is - up to the present time - a largely intact closed village with a southern entrance gate and narrow, interconnected clay houses, which are grouped around the old charming square, the Market Place. Two buildings dominate the square: the Xingiao Temple and the Theater Stage. Only outside the center, along a new street, several modern houses and a school can be found. Many of the older houses display facade paintings and carvings. The dominant courtyard house of the Ouyang family stands out for its particularly rich decoration and unadulterated spatial disposition. Thus, special attention was to be paid to this house in terms of monument preservation considerations. The maintenance and revitalization measures included the following tasks :
Restoration of the Xingjiao Temple from the 13 th Century
Restoration of the Theater Stage with equipment from a local museum
Restoration of the paving of the square and the rainwater sewer
Reconstruction of a dilapidated house as a test building for local building workers
Restoration of two courtyard gates with two test groups of building workers
Urban restoration of the remaining South Gate
New construction of the missing West Gate from existing evidence
The restoration and reconstruction measures were part of the first phases which started in 2004 and ended formally when the project was handed over to the local authorities in 2006.
Further thoughts on traditional villages in Yunnan and Guangxi.
In the years after the Shaxi project (2004-2007), I have undertaken several private trips to minority villages in the provinces of Yunnan and Guangxi. In the following, I will briefly summarize the observations I made in areas in which the prevailing construction system was made of wood.
The dwellings consist of a frame construction with two levels, with an open ground fl oor in most cases which is used as a shelter for animals and equipment. On the upper floor, which is, as in many minority villages, not really divided in separate rooms, there are the kitchen as well as the sleeping and living areas. Such houses are rather basic in design and construction method and feature neither living comfort nor modern sanitation. Even the courtyard houses in Shaxi are wooden framed buildings, even though the exterior walls have often been sheathed with unfi red clay blocks. The houses in this area likewise offer very little living comfort according to present day standards (and in the view of the town inhabitants). In the houses, conceived as courtyard houses, all rooms open onto the courtyard.
The rooms are sometimes separated from the outside by means of perforated lattice doors. However, they are usually open or even missing entirely. For Europeans, this open way of living is quite unusual since we prefer a closed space and especially differently utilized spaces in the house: living room, bedroom, children's room, kitchen, stairway, and hall. Among the basic renovation measures of old houses are insulation, improvements in the infrastructure (electricity, water, and drainage), and modernization of kitchen, bath, and toilets. Public canalization is found everywhere, even in the villages. In the villages I visited, there is a much greater discrepancy between village dwellings and modern city habitation. Clearly, in the view of the people striving for new living comfort, the old, traditional houses cannot be converted and upgraded to present day living standards. In addition, the economic power of the individual family is not sufficient to let them take (much needed) restoration measures which would bring about an increased living comfort. Thus, they attempt to obtain new dwellings whenever possible.
In my opinion, it would not be difficult to modernize the traditional wooden buildings since their timber frame structure is rather simple. The houses usually are very sturdy and could be improved and extended using traditional construction methods. With the installation of space cells, individual rooms with designated functions, such as a kitchen or a wet room (bath, shower, and toilet), could be created.
From the perspective of a foreigner, it is evident that the intact villages are located in extremely attractive natural surroundings, just as they were laid out centuries ago. This is touristic capital which could provide the local inhabitants with a competitive edge. Even though these villages are still very far away from economic hotspots and areas of high population density, the fi rst signs of encroachment are appearing even now and here due to arbitrary and ruthless modernization. In this area, there are not enough funds to fi nance rebuilding on a large scale. Apart from the legitimate but idealistic call for general prosperity for all the village inhabitants, this area provides a great opportunity for the conservation of traditional culture and the preservation of traditional values, which in other parts of China have already been forfeited.
Reckless tourism and marketing campaigns would have an adverse effect on the local culture. Therefore, other means are needed to develop these regions. The basic prerequisites for the successful conservation of the traditional building culture are a functioning spatial planning, in which legal parameters of monument protection can be implemented, and consulting services for the local population in questions of monument preservation, which should be performed by trained architects and construction experts. For this purpose, specialist training in monument preservation, building design, and the history of architecture should be offered for such future experts, for instance as postgraduate studies at universities or at other institutes of higher education as it is done in Switzerland.
The Shaxi Project could be a conceptual model for similar regional planning projects.