Recap of lecture on 10/03/12 - watch video here: part 1 / part 2

Daan Roggeveen: Go West Project

www.gowestproject.com

“Twenty years ago Mr Sun was a simple Chinese farmer.  Today he owns a block of flats in the centre of a city of millions.  And he didn’t move an inch.”

– How the City Moved to Mr Sun

Introduction

- usually presents with journalist Michiel Hulshof
- Go West Project combines research, architecture, and media

Chongquing
- population of 33 million, same as the entire country of Austria
- 700 construction workers living in a makeshift village on site; developed both residential and service areas – workers don’t need to leave site
- workers earn 5x as much in city as in countryside – better life for children in country

Chinese cities vs. world cities
- average 9.6 million vs. 6.7 million population
- average universities vs. top universities
- cultural desert vs. cultural oasis
- developing vs. expensive

Mr Sun and Shijiazhuang
- Mr Sun broke down his farm and built a house, including his personal residence, commercial floors, and rentable units
- every year one million Chinese farmers turn farms into buildings
- in Mr Sun’s city alone, 1,200 families have turned farms into buildings
- not just big projects going up – others reflect creativity of many individuals
- cultural shift – former farmers now living in skyscrapers

Chengdu
- four new museums currently under construction
- government created art spaces around popular places and galleries that were once independently run
- top down culture

Continuing urbanization
- is there a new urban mold developing in Chinese cities?
- rapid urbanization, high contrast between rural and urban
- physical city rises first, then population follows
- residential typologies not yet varied
- raises questions in environment, real estate, and culture

Next SAID lecture: Walter Hood, 10/15/12 at 5:00 pm in DAAP 5401