HOA 3 - WEEK 4 ARCHITECTURE OF CHINA PDF

# The Architecture of China ## Huang He River - Land near the Huang He (Yellow) River - Map of China with key cities, tourist sites and the Great Wall. ## Brief Historical Background ### Succession of Emperors and Dynasties - **Shang Dynasty** ~ 1500-1050 BCE - Shang artists perfected elabora...

# The Architecture of China ## Huang He River - Land near the Huang He (Yellow) River - Map of China with key cities, tourist sites and the Great Wall. ## Brief Historical Background ### Succession of Emperors and Dynasties - **Shang Dynasty** ~ 1500-1050 BCE - Shang artists perfected elaborate bronze-casting of different vessels which held wines, water, grain or meat. - **Zhou Dynasty** ~ 1050-256 BCE - Zhou artists produced objects carved in jade and used lacquering as material finish. - Confucianism began with the birth of the philosopher, Confucius in 551 BCE. - He who wrote of ideas about respect and the well-being of others - the importance of daily life and human interactions. - **Qin Dynasty** ~ 221-206 BCE uniting all warring states - **First Emperor of China** - Shi Huangdi, it was during his reign that new wall boundaries were built and became known as the Great Wall of China - Built as fortification against the Hun invaders, a nomadic group of people from the North of China. - **Archaeologists** uncover an army of terracotta soldiers (1974) in pits next to the emperor's burial mound, with each figure of terracotta soldier averaging in height of 5'-10". - **Han Dynasty** ~ 206 BCE - 220 CE - Han Emperors ruled China for four centuries creating a new equally powerful and centralized government. - Extending China's boundaries to the south and to the west - Trading of precious Chinese silk via the fabled Silk Road extending from China-India-Mediterranean Region. - **Period of Disunity** ~ 220-589 CE - Also known as the Period of Six Dynasties, a period where Buddhism gained foothold among the Chinese with a promise of hope beyond the world's troubles. ## Examples of Chinese Architecture ### Pagodas - Buddhist temple, most typical Chinese building of religious significance. - Later gained a secular nature: monuments to victory or a memorial to hold relics - Based on the Indian stupa and stambha - Octagonal in plan. - Odd number of storeys, from 3 to 13 storeys - Roofs projecting from each of its many floors, turned up eaves (upended roof) - Slopes inwards to the top. ### Pai-Lou - Monumental, ceremonial gateway and basic symbolic structure in Chinese architecture. - Erected as memorials to eminent persons - Led to temples, palaces, tombs or sacred places. - Related to the Indian torana and Japanese torii. - Trabeated form, in stone or wood - Bold projecting roofs - 1, 3, or 5 openings. ### Temples - Buddhist Temples ### Palaces and Imperial Seats ## Typical Features of Chinese Architecture ### Indigenous Construction System - Traditional Chinese architecture was built using a wooden frame structure. - Wood is easily available in this region and can easily adapt to varying climates and is suitable in earthquake-prone regions. - The dry timber construction was erected through structural joineries and dowelling alone. - Instead of nails and glue, interlocking elements like the dougong are used. - This would prevent buckling and torsion under high compression and allow for the building to absorb shock vibrations from earthquakes. ### Dou - A spreading block placed upon a column to support the beam above more broadly ### Gong - Depictions of curved arms attached near the top of the columns and parallel to the building wall, extending outward and up to help support the beam. - **Dougong** is a bracket system joining the top of the post and horizontal roof beam. - **Up-ended Roof Eave** - The origin of the distinctive curve of the roof, which first appeared in China about the 6th century CE, is not fully understood, although a number of theories have been put forward. - The upswept eaves at the corners of the Chinese roof, however, do have a structural function in reducing what would otherwise be an excessive overhang of the roof at that point. - **Roof Figures** - Chinese imperial roof decorations or roof charms or roof-figures or 'walking beasts' or 'crouching beasts' - Were statuettes placed along the ridge line of official buildings of the Chinese empire. - Only official buildings (palaces, government buildings, and some temples) were permitted to use such roof decorations. - **Auspicious Colors** - In general, Chinese buildings used bright colours with vermilion paint applied to pillars and balustrades, yellow for glazed roof tiles, and green paint for decorative parts such as the brackets under the eaves. - The yellow roof tiles of the imperial palaces in the Forbidden city and in other Chinese imperial palaces, were reserved for royalty - yellow was the colour of emperors. - Green was also a popular colour for roof tiles, representing wealth, growth, and harmony. - Red curved ceramic tiles on roofs and red-painted woodwork display the luckiest colour in China. - **Symmetrical Layouts** - There were various styles of ancient Chinese architecture, such as imperial palaces, temples, and residential buildings with layouts obeying the symmetrical rule. - The main buildings would stand on the north-south axis, and then the secondary buildings were usually located on two sides in east-west pairs. - In domestic architecture, the complex is divided in the middle with symmetrical arrangements on both sides. - **Chinese Gardens** - Chinese gardens are a distinctly evolved landscape style that is based on three kinds of conceptions: aspire, immoral, and natural. - Each of these is found in different classes of society: royalty, temples, and scholars respectively, it becomes evident how the aspects of the theories of philosophy, politics, virtue, and aesthetics are reflected in these gardens. - The balance of the relation of all the elements; water, architecture, vegetation, and rocks, is gracefully integrated into these gardens to become a paradise for humans amongst nature. - Placed intelligently, these could ironically become equalizers across different classes of society and be a peaceful and calming place for all.