+
From: Architexturez <interface.services@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
+
Date: Fri, 18 May 2007 11:53:29 +0530
China chasing an urban utopia
By Daniel Allen
BEIJING - Pipe-dream design or realistic vision of the future? Standing
on the bleak concrete expanse of the world's largest square, it's hard
to visualize Chairman Mao Zedong's mausoleum surrounded by trees and a
carpet of grass. Such is the wind of change currently blowing through
China's native architectural scene, and the day when a visit to
Tiananmen Square means a walk in the park may not actually be that far
away.
A famous Chinese expression states, "Jiu de bu qu, xin de bu lai," which
means in effect, "If the old doesn't go, the new won't come." Beijing's
widespread transformation over the past 15 years clearly demonstrates
that most of the capital's planners and developers have adopted this as
their principal working philosophy. Nonetheless, many have complained
that a lot of the old that has now disappeared was good, sacrificed for
some pretty ugly, third-rate, un-Chinese architecture.
cont'd....
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/IE18Ad01.html