Archinect - News

The Weitzman School of Design's latest exhibition offers a look at the impact its alumni had in making China modern

2022-01-18T13:03:00-05:00

What can a western architectural education do in a developing country? The legacy of one of the leading design colleges in America is being examined as such in a new exhibition called Building in China: A Century of Dialogues on Modern Architecture at the University of Pennsylvania’s Stuart Weitzman School of Design in Philadelphia.

The exhibition is presented in unison with Southeast University School of Architecture and the Tongji University College of Architecture and Urban Planning and features a two-part format that looks first at the historical impacts the university has had on the development of architecture in the country after 1920.

Peace Hotel of Beijing, designed by Tingbao Yang. Image courtesy University of Pennsylvania.

Penn educated a number of prominent Chinese architects during those years, and many went on to successful architectural careers that were heavily influenced by the proximity to the international movement of modernism which began at the university. The fi...

Amateur Architecture Studio brings traditional Chinese materials and craftsmanship into modern architecture

2018-08-30T16:15:00-04:00

Wang Shu and his wife, Lu Wenyu, of China’s Amateur Architecture Studio want to protect Chinese culture and history by returning to artisanal building techniques and the use of materials such as natural stone, wood and bamboo. Wang Shu’s rejection of what he calls “professional, soulless architecture” has almost become a war cry. That kind of architecture, he believes, is ruining China.

Amateur Architecture Studio focuses on creating work that transcends the black and white divide of traditional and modern architecture. The duo have made it their mission to bring back handmade work and natural materials into modernization.

China Academy of Art Xiangshan Campus by Amateur Architecture Studio. Image: Tõnis Kimmel/Flickr.

Wang Shu was the first Chinese Pritzker winner, awarded back in 2012, for his commitment to reviving traditional craftsmanship in the profession.

China Academy of Art, Wa Shan Guesthouse, Xiangshan Campus by Amateur Architecture Studio. Image: Iwan Baan.

The studio works with material such as bamboo, stone, and wood rather than only focusing on concrete and steel. The Chinese tradition of handmade construction is essential to Shu, who prefers the title of "artisan" rather than "architect".

She came to find her memory

2013-01-07T15:32:00-05:00

"In offering an alternative view, Wang disputes that the power and prevalence of huge new building projects are the only or inevitable architectural products his country has to offer"

Last year Rowan Moore had a chance to speak with Wang Shu (winner of the 2012 Pritzker Architecture Prize) when he was in London for the Sustaining Identity conference at the Victoria & Albert Museum. The conference sought to bring together acclaimed international architects whose work resists homogenisation by prioritising place, the senses and memory. Their discussion published early last month, touched on the temporal nature of China's massive building projects, the influence of but not strict adherence to traditional building methods and forms, along with the reason the studio has Amateur, in its name.

Fusing Old and New, to International Acclaim

2012-08-09T14:51:00-04:00

“We want to copy Manhattan,” he said over lunch near his studio. “I love Manhattan. It’s a very interesting place. But if you want to copy something that was accomplished in 200 years, it’s very difficult. New York was not designed by architects, it was designed by time.”

Jane Perlez profiles Wang Shu and his wife, Lu Wenyu of Amateur Architecture Studio. Their conversation touched on the architects' concerns regarding China’s rush to urbanization along Western models. They also discussed how the two split off duties in the firm.

Editor's Picks #253

2012-03-04T18:04:00-05:00

Chinese architect Wang Shu was this week named the 2012 Pritzker Prize winner. Will Galloway commented "unexpected but very coolio. i met wang shu last year at conference held by my uni her in tokyo. nice guy and very impressive presentation. love his work and his approach. i like that pritzker is not going after the usual suspects, personally."

Woody Evans a librarian living on the south side of Dubai., recently interviewed Sophia Vyzoviti an assistant professor of architectural design methodology at the Department of Architecture, University of Thessaly Greece, about Building Between Dimensions.

They discussed augmented reality, touching stuff, and the aesthetics of smart textures. Sophia is quoted therein saying "Material computing is a recent discipline specific term that describes the analogue form-finding processes complementing the new digital design tools". The two also explored the possible implications of applying the phrase uncanny valley from robotics to the development of biomimetic architecture. There is also this mouthful of a passage, used to describe Sophia’s book Soft Shells, "The work is primarily analogue, conducted in a low-tech, high-concept fashion, but operates as a digital morphogenesis propedia, exercises algorithmic thinking and suggests alternative and cross-over fabrication methods".

News

...

Editor's Picks #236

2011-11-06T17:08:22-05:00

Gregory Walker, noted that Zaha Hadid Architects now has an app for that and thinks they may have finally jumped the shark. However, Steven Ward thought that "in a context where your business is built on maintaining your brand, this probably doesn't seem like a tough or strange decision at all." and lletdownl agreed arguing that "it makes perfect sense to me to develop a method of viewing your work targeted specifically to the fastest growing method of browsing.

In the latest Contours feature Guy Horton, asked What Should Architecture Occupy? He concluded that, "occupying is a state of mind more than anything. It’s a stance, an orientation, an outlook, a perspective. Where do you stand right now?”
EllaStelter responds “Architects certainly aren't part of the 1%, but we do generally serve their interests. From what I see, architecture is a profession that is rather resistant to change and challenging the status quo, even when it is in our best interests."

Don’t forget to participate in Archinect’s anonymous #OWS survey

William Hunter, wrote about a group of student’s, from UCL Bartlett Development Planning Unit’s MSc Building and Urban Design in Development (BUDD) course, attempts at Decoding Bangkok’s Pocket-Urbanization. While in Bangkok for three weeks the students worked closely with two local organizations CODI and BMP. William argued that the main reason for this teamup was the fact that "truly participatory design arguably req...