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Chinese Exceptionalism in Architecture and Urban Design Wong

Pritzker-Prize-winning Wang Shu, Liu Jiakun, mixed, regardless of a region’s definition in
and same-generation architects who come the urban, rural, or suburban. Du is also
[7]
from backgrounds of historical revolution . interested in unsettling architectural
They generally hint towards more variegated typologies. In criticizing purpose-built towers
forms of authorship that forge more and “Technology Parks,” she instead takes
connections with the commoner and their interest in urban villages as promising spaces
craft. of inspiration, where a mix-use program and
informal land use foster diverse and vibrant
4. URBAN SOCIAL JUSTICE human activity. Lastly, for Roskam, parallel
This section consists of the analysis of how to the rise of the international hotel is the
these three publications provided three simmering of societal imbalances and
different but comparable approaches of inequality. He insists that the segregationist
architectural type and authorship to argue for tactics of foreigner-only hotel as emblematic
the exceptionalism of contemporary Chinese of the asymmetric policies and contradictions
social justice issues. Urban social justice is of reform. Thus, one way of dismantling class
defined as the points of contestations in urban divide is to deconstruct the givenness of these
development, where different stakeholder architectural typologies.
groups in the city compete for resources, and Furthermore, these authors demonstrate
in the process of which their interests are the many Chinese exceptionalist authorship
being (de)prioritized over others. Besides, models alternative to the Western, single-
this section examines what is at stake in this authored starchitect. As Bonino shows, the
exceptionalism, particularly how Western proliferation of architectural objects by
terms are insufficient to cover phenomena in Western brand names sustains a speculative
Chinese spaces. It is argued that terming is a economy that thrives on inequality. As Du
way of explicating social justice issues, out of urges, the ethnographic voices of migrant
which arise potential solutions. In other words, workers and indigenous urban villagers add
a Chinese urbanscape that could only be friction and texture to a city narrative, hailing
accessed with the right words for its issues. Deng as the visionary, or Farrell as the master
While Western theories such as the builder. As Roskam traces, architectural
Lefebvrian idea of the “right to the city” [11] authorship has always occupied a contentious
or Susan Feinstein’s concept of “the just city” position from the Cultural Revolution to
[12] can offer us general provocations, early-reform foreign interactivity, to recent
distinctive theories rooted in the Chinese Chinese private practices. These authors
context, and circumstances should be simultaneously look to architectural history
invented for more direct solutions. More for insights to democratize/equalize a deeply
about this exceptionalist discourse could be stratified society that is China today.
read from human geographer Wing-Shing
Tang’s Tongbian philosophy [13] . In an
architectural context, it means to explore the ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
conduits of typology and authorship. Thank you to the anonymous reviewer for the
A Western tyranny of architectural feedback on my manuscript and to the editors
typology hindered our assessment of a milieu at Journal of Chinese Architecture and
of social justice issues across different Urbanism for the edits.
stratums of society. In the book, Chinese new
town as a typology is decidedly vague and FUNDING
open to interpretation. Governa notes that the No funding was received for this book review.
typological fluidity of the Chinese new towns
overcomes “the predefined horizons of the CONFLICT OF INTEREST
[2]
city and its transformation” (p. 216) . For No conflict of interest was reported by the
example, residential and industrial uses are author.

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