Page 45 - JCAU-5-4

Journal of Chinese
Architecture and Urbanism Learning from the countryside

These cases were selected to encompass a wide range of marketing urban-rural continuum structure, as illustrated
architectural and village types, as well as different geographical in Figure 2. The territory of Huiyang consists of two
situations – an inner plain in Chengdu and coastal for seawalls “communes” (Figure 3): Danshui, with the town located
towns in Ningbo. In this way, these different situations provide in correspondence with the bridge of Danshui River (a
the conditions for stress-testing Skinner’s territorial model of tributary of Dong River) and Qiuchang, with two minor
the urban-rural continuum network. 7 marketplaces (Xiang Ling, at the north, and Wei Bu,
In all the cases we collected, we followed a methodology at the east). These marketplaces gather the marketing
based on three steps: communities of 5 – 6 villages each, along with nearly one
(i) First, we addressed the problem of mapping the hundred weilong-type Hakka residences.
different forms that the urban-rural continuum model Both marketplaces were located alongside a river and
can assume, depending on geographical and cultural a primary road – the former leading to Huizhou and the
situations. latter to Guangzhou.
(ii) Second, we investigated the different architectural The majority of urban development outlined in the
types and village morphology as part of the model. Master Plan 2007 – 2020 (Figure 4) was concentrated in the
(iii) Third, in some selected cases, we arrived at a design Qiuchang commune territory. This development involved
synthesis by proposing contemporary urban-rural an increase in the presence of industrial compounds in
continuum forms, drawing inspiration from the Wei Bu villages, the establishment of new industrial areas,
morphological and architectural models we found in and the construction of residential and office blocks in Tie
the investigated cases. Men Shan villages. Agricultural land was preserved, with
These steps will be elaborated upon in detail within the the exception of Zhoutian village, which was designated
descriptions of the case studies and design output in the for use as an agricultural park. At that time, the common
following paragraphs. practice for the conservation of Hakka residences was the
All the projects we worked on assumed the form of the
“green city” (Meriggi, 2009) as a possible model of urban
development. This “green city” concept encompasses both
“rural and urban” features and performances, taking into
account landscape and activity complexity.
The cases of Pidu and Kandun, elaborated by the
authors’ Ph.D. and Master’s Degree theses in 2021 (as
described in the following paragraphs) illustrate how the
phases of our methodology, initially experimented with
in the case of Huiyang in 2010 – 2013, were consequently
applied. Regarding the Huiyang case, where we have
already provided substantial information, we will focus on
the following lines on the design output.

3. Findings
3.1. Project: “Rebuilding from the countryside”
(Huiyang, Huizhou, PRD)
Huiyang serves as the western intermediate market
town in the triangular scheme of Huizhou prefecture’s

7 In addition to these cases, as part of a PhD research project,
our research group also considered Minnan villages in the
Julong River Delta (Fujian) and water villages in Jiangnan
(Zhejiang), highlighting the nuances of the urban-rural
continuum in deltaic areas. We also studied historical Figure 4. Huiyang Master Plan 2007 – 2020 (Huiyang Bureau of Housing
villages in Huizhou (Anhui), revealing the nuances of and Urban-Rural Development, 2007). In the frame, the villages of
the Qiuchang commune are highlighted in black (based on the 1979
urban-rural continuum in a mountainous area. The outputs Qiuchang Commune map). It is evident that the road network of the new
of these investigations, which compare 6 different forms of city intersects and divides the historical Hakka residences. In addition,
urban-rural continuum, will be presented in an ongoing it is worth noting that many of the Hakka residences are situated within
book titled Mapping Chinese Urban-Rural Continuum. industrial areas. Source: Chen et al., 2023, p. 11

Volume 5 Issue 4 (2023) 6 https://doi.org/10.36922/jcau.0981