Modu Magazine: A Tale of Urban China

Post-financial crisis architects come to China as “economic refugees”

The myth of the American dream, according to which any person living in the United States has the opportunity to prosper through hard work, has now become Chinese. The economic crisis has led to unemployment, a slower pace of investment and construction; architects are particularly affected. In parallel, McKinsey predicts that China will build the equivalent of ten New Yorks in the next 20 years, amounting to 50,000 buildings, representing huge opportunities for a whole generation of architects.

The New York Times recently interviewed international architects who came to China to find work and a less-restricted work environment. What are their impressions today on the Chinese architectural world? One architect working at MAD architects says that when he arrived in 2009, he was almost the only foreigner, but today, half of the staff in his office is composed of newly arrived Spanish, Americans, or Germans.

  • 2012/03/23

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  • Modu Team

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Learning from China: India’s Urbanization Needs Better Institutional Tools: 19.075984, 72.877656
Accommodating the Dead in Cities, a Spatial Challenge?: 39.907438, 116.235718
Plans for new Daxing Airport in Beijing Revealed: 39.512120, 116.411133
When Geographers take over Wukan: 22.924667, 115.712907
The Puzzle of Land Reform in Shenzhen: 22.543099, 114.057868
Demolition: An Architectural Life-Cycle: 41.738641, 123.457317
Destruction: The Violence Goes On: 23.304757, 113.263584
The Invention of Tradition in Hangzhou, 1911-1927: 30.275674, 120.150486
Immobile Strikes for more Mobility: 39.905909, 116.391349
Skating and the City: 31.225344, 121.488892
Jinhua Architecture Park became a Wasteland: 29.108404, 119.692483
Beijing Besieged by Waste: Photographer Wang Jiuliang Investigates: 39.905909, 116.391349
Western Cities in China: Pretty Landscapes, Urban Experiments, or Both?: 31.341563, 121.575489
Densifying Rural Territories: New Territorial Planning Tools: 30.572269, 104.066541
Ford Rewards Two Chinese Apps on Urban Mobility: 29.558571, 106.549282
A Digital Library in Beijing’s Subway: 39.983557, 116.310239
Art in Beijing’s Subway: 39.905909, 116.391349
Tibet : 30% Urban Residents in 2020: 29.646923, 91.117212
Unprecedented Lawsuit and New Legal Amendments in the Fight Against Pollution: 32.520763, 119.924011
Shanghai Graffiti in Memory of Buildings marked for Demolition: 31.234745, 121.440296
Vertical Cemeteries Economize Space in Hong Kong: 22.297624, 114.248285
The Heritage of Japanese Comfort Houses in Shanghai: 31.268537, 121.498833
Guangzhou: New Initiative to Recycle Plastic: 23.116700, 113.250000
Cultural Infrastructure in China: A New Strategy in Urban Marketing : 39.600238, 109.778781
Sex and the City of Dongguan: 23.051413, 113.741798
Old Shangri-La Ravaged by Fire: 27.830682, 99.700584
Resurgence of Interest in Beijing’s Old Hutong: 39.893550, 116.386328
Guangdong acquires Carbon Market : 23.116700, 113.250000
Hong Kong: Miniature Sculptures for Social Housing: 22.281906, 114.157884
Persistent Shortage of Social Housing in Hong Kong: 22.277279, 114.194641
Brownfield in Beijing: From Decaying Steel to Electro Dance Party: 39.914476, 116.154671
Re-Purposed Bomb Shelters offer New Housing Options : 39.905909, 116.391349
New Anti-pollution Plan for Beijing: 39.905909, 116.391349
Subway passengers in Beijing now able to pay fares by recycling: 39.905909, 116.391349
Beijing’s ‘scrap communities’ threatened by urban sprawl: 40.054791, 116.376580
Infographics: Beijing expands transportation networks : 40.013857, 116.283760
Gulangyu competes for recognition as World Heritage site: 24.444704, 118.065948
Social networks influence Taipei elections: 25.037520, 121.562760
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Taiyuan’s underground trash bins receive public approval : 37.870590, 112.548879
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New Threats to the Drum and Bell Towers and surrounding Historical Area: 39.939461, 116.389825
Yuening completes construction of 30-story building in 15 days: 29.364433, 113.115921
Creating land from sea: 39.013155, 118.563080
New heritage renovation and restoration measures announced in Beijing: 39.905909, 116.391349
Chongqing’s Invisibles: A Photographic Series: 29.554255, 106.569003
New rural internet network initiated in Guangxi Province: 22.969297, 107.120220
Zhang Kechun’s Yellow River : 35.644686, 100.222778
Korea’s New Songdo Digital City : 37.383912, 126.643855
Shenzhen bans Electric Bicycles : 22.543099, 114.057868
City planning from China to Angola: -9.000000, 13.266667
Collaborative mapping may provide critical support to victims of natural disasters: 14.638599, 121.058350
Mongolian Yurt in Beijing protests the city’s high rents: 39.905909, 116.391349
Hong Kong art collective CYRCLE storms skyscrapers: 22.283485, 114.224768
Harbin Sound Map: 45.765667, 126.616058
Yan’an to relocate residents of traditional troglodyte dwellings : 36.608197, 109.482880
Cultural Heritage Day: Shanghai opens more than 100 historical sites to visitors: 31.216228, 121.449094
New measures to curb car congestion: 39.905909, 116.391349
Proposal to transform Beijing into a Seaport: 39.905909, 116.391349
Chinese Urbanization overlooks religion: 28.656400, 115.877257
Beijing: A Seventh Ring Road to Enhance Integration with Hebei: 39.905909, 116.391349
Cell Phone Pedestrian Lanes planned for Chongqing : 29.611233, 106.599720
Chengdu: A new technology hub of China’s South-west: 30.676555, 104.061278
Fare hike debated for Beijing’s Public transport: 39.905909, 116.391349
Dalian building World’s largest off-shore airport: 38.964628, 121.535568
China’s first metro museum opens in Shanghai: 31.171879, 121.361718
China’s stalled baby boom: 39.905909, 116.391349
Shanghai to Digitalize City by 2016: 31.225344, 121.488892
Large-scale Strikes Spread in Southern China: 23.024917, 113.114617
A social study of Beijing’s underground homes : 39.905909, 116.391349
Arranging residential interstices in Beijing: 39.905909, 116.391349
Chuzhou announces plans for Singaporean-designed industrial park : 32.244036, 118.327560
French bridge gets second life in Shunde : 22.796297, 113.288612
Qinhuai River redevelopment process begins in Yangzhou: 32.393667, 119.436665
When architecture becomes literature: 30.245512, 120.155797
Participatory budgeting to revitalize Chengdu’s rural areas: 30.676555, 104.061278
Rural to urban training programs offered to aspiring urbanites in Ordos: 39.582501, 109.753199
Air corridors in Beijing to blow away the smog : 39.905909, 116.391349
Qingdao a hotspot for domestic tourism in China: 36.089504, 120.349719
Large-scale Redevelopment of Shanghai’s main road Pudong Avenue : 31.243567, 121.527414
Hong Kong’s religious institutions enter real estate market: 22.276039, 114.158764
Reappropriation of Nanjing railway line perseveres : 31.988379, 118.817139
Urban exodus for Chinese artists: 29.954231, 117.909019
A photographic approach to Chinese urbanization: 37.333682, -121.890022
New Study on the impact of urban design on obesity: 31.223984, 121.418682
Unlocking the power of a child’s imagination to improve urban planning practices: 28.657291, 77.227260
Prominent firms collaborate on star-shaped terminal for New Beijing airport: 39.512120, 116.411133
“Urban acupuncture” in rural China: 28.354175, 121.139897
Guardian auction house in Beijing welcomes a new museum: 39.922540, 116.403902
“Heteroscapes”: Artist Wang Bo’s urban landscapes in transition : 29.558571, 106.549282
How Japan’s aging population may have something to teach China: 35.684072, 139.768066
Hong Kong residents urged to provide opinions on built environment : 22.330976, 114.191463
Bicycles now offer a new form of urban identity : 39.947023, 116.408880
Yangtze River driving urbanization in Central China: 30.596021, 114.299280
World Bank invests in road construction and management in rural China: 37.694637, 100.525741
Water Diversion Project: the controversial completion of China’s new canal: 32.660900, 111.647010
Refrigeration plant in Xiamen transformed into repurposed art center: 24.440703, 118.083415
Ai Weiwei’s reveals Beijing portrait : 39.905909, 116.391349
The Architecture of Sound: 39.903368, 116.383624
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Ordos: failure or temporary standstill?: 39.582501, 109.753199
Ecole de Chaillot: publication of Wang Shu’s inaugural lecture: 30.159848, 120.076361
“Pingfeng Style”: a parody on recoverded farmland: 33.628156, 114.642334
Artistic short film explores urban planning in Beijing: 39.905909, 116.391349
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Digital archives of China’s cultural heritage: 39.905909, 116.391349
Temple in Shichahai converted into cinema for the blind: 39.935979, 116.390018
Exhibition and conference explores Beijing’s hutong and courtyard homes: 39.905170, 116.335897
A new generation of optimistic and ambitious migrants: 31.225344, 121.488892
Beijing’s historical axis seeks recognition in world heritage list: 39.905909, 116.391349
Vanke on a cloud: 29.642690, 106.515850
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The modern flaneur’s guide to Shanghai: 31.225344, 121.488892
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Sinking cities: 38.304477, 116.838835
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Chongqing’s urban fenzy: plans to develop Chaotianmen Harbor: 29.569591, 106.584227
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Wang Shu presents work at Harvard’s Kenzo Tange lecture series: 30.159848, 120.076361
Beijing’s further promotes green roofs: 39.905909, 116.391349
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Rural utopia in Beijing’s Mentougou District: 39.955172, 116.093473
Living in Beijing: a suburban topography: 39.909233, 116.653948
Residential mobility in Shanghai: 31.239136, 121.399441
Apec: preemptive anto-pollution measures in Beijing: 40.386480, 116.671230
China’s new development strategies in Africa: -26.088003, 28.144452
Beijing airport: the art of landing amid the smog: 40.079857, 116.603112
China’s eco-cities and their challenges: 39.123760, 117.735330
Hong Kong’s rooftop farming: 22.396428, 114.109497
Better compensation for expropriated farmers : 22.975590, 115.346914
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Guangzhou’s Little Africa: Xiatangxi Neighborhood: 23.142201, 113.271095
Beijing blue roofs: 39.937355, 116.414545
“Ink City” by Chen Shaoxiong: 23.116700, 113.250000
Location Scouting for Antoine Boutet’s new film “South to North”: 32.660900, 111.647010
A new cast of pivotal Urban Actors: 39.983348, 116.488037
798: Arts in the City: 39.983348, 116.488037
The Visual Space of the 798: 39.983348, 116.488037
Shanghai Corniche Park: 31.182970, 121.459522
Why stay in town?: 39.980129, 116.471386
Urban changes in Xinjiang : “Sinisation” of the urban space : 43.821713, 87.562752
Real estate giant Wanda invests in Grand Paris metropolis: 48.970000, 2.463100
Municipal government decides to take on Beijing’s wastewater issues: 39.905909, 116.391349
Jing-jin-ji project celebrates its two year anniversary: 39.909233, 116.653948
Learning from a collaborative renovation of a dazayuan in Beijing: 39.928563, 116.413600
Hong Kong, Macau and Zhuhai linked by a giant maritime infrastructure: 22.291320, 113.931141
Portfolios: Chinese cities in their fullness and their emptiness: 39.582501, 109.753199
Taipei’s residents involved in urban regeneration: 25.037520, 121.562760
A study reveals four types of “extreme mobility” in Beijing: 39.905909, 116.391349
Moving Beijing’s townhall to Tongzhou: new stakes at the metropolitan scale: 39.909233, 116.653948
A Hongkongese architecture firm promotes social dialogue in the Chinese countryside: 22.279328, 114.162813
Beijing: The forgotten temple of Baitasi neighbourhood: 39.923640, 116.357290
A Chinese sovereign fund invests in Grand Paris: 48.856610, 2.351499
Hangzhou: Kengo Kuma completes a new museum: 30.159848, 120.076361
Exhibition of early photographs of Beijing (1870-1890): 39.905909, 116.391349
A student in architecture completes a mosque in Shaanxi Province: 34.303085, 108.487008
Beijing: state of the art: 39.940442, 116.411991
Can the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Cluster become the “Dragon Head” of the North?: 39.909233, 116.653948
Offbeat practices in China’s Public Space: 22.279328, 114.162813
China, kingdom of bike-sharing service: 30.275674, 120.150486
Portfolio: Shanghai, Dust Never Sleeps: 31.225344, 121.488892
Will Chinese Apps Redefine The Future of Bike-Sharing in France?: 48.856610, 2.351499
Mad Architects’ Proposal for Montparnasse Tower: a ’Mirage’ in Paris: 48.842110, 2.321980
The Urban Fabric of Xiamen Revealed by Atelier Sóo-Tsāi: 24.457200, 118.074500
Promoting ‘Less Is More’: Beijing’s New Urban Master Plan: 39.905909, 116.391349
Long-term planning is what Hong Kong needs to confront its land shortage: 22.279328, 114.162813
A Brief History of Beijing’s Former Princely Mansions (and their Latest Challenges): 39.934360, 116.380430
How the Greater Bay Area Initiative is Reshaping South China’s Urban Development: 22.279328, 114.162813
Urban renewal of offices in Beijing: an answer to high space demand and rising prices?: 39.905909, 116.391349
In Beijing Old City, An Alternative Revitalisation Strategy Conserves Vernacular Heritage Yet Invites Gentrification: 39.893550, 116.386328
Hong Kong In Video-Games: Mafia Culture and Urban Fabric As A Source Of Inspiration: 22.279328, 114.162813
The “Taobao villages” phenomenon: how e-commerce (also) redefines rural areas in China: 35.065973, 115.599174
Is Gentrification Inevitable in Urban Village Renewal Projects? The case of Vanke’ Wancun Project in Shenzhen: 22.661502, 114.053729
‘The Port and the Image’ – The Port of Ningbo: Fiction and Reality: 29.872034, 121.550138
Japanese Architect Arata Isozaki Receives 2019 Pritzker Prize: 30.267185, 120.082583
Authenticity, Tourism, and Residents: the Dilemma of Heritage Conservation in China: 36.443981, 115.964470
‘The Port and the Image’ – Excavations of a Shipwreck: 24.903565, 118.586082
Lighting up Hong Kong: between independence and integration, a power grid in the Pearl River Delta: 22.279328, 114.162813
How China’s Chequebook Diplomacy is Reshaping Urbanisation in Cambodia: 10.622817, 103.522110
‘The Port and the Image’ - A Nanjing Just Like Nanjing: 31.988379, 118.817139
Hong Kong Bets on Transitional Housing to Solve the Accommodation Shortage: 22.279328, 114.162813
“Forest” by Yan Wang Preston: Grafting Old Trees to Young Cities: 25.716559, 100.255051
Vietnam: Green Cities or Greenwashing?: 10.773400, 106.707200
Indonesia: How do Deal with Overload Cities ?: -6.175210, 106.827080
Reframing Chinese Villages: 30.004949, 117.983483
The Port and the Image’ - The diffuse radiation of Guangzhou’s trade history: 23.116700, 113.250000
In Shenyang and Chengdu, the Strange Aesthetic of “Flat-Pack” City: 41.795900, 123.438800
The Port and the Image’ - Xu Hao: When Objects Become Language: 31.225344, 121.488892
Oil-for-Development: The Shifting Dynamics of Sino-Angolan Relations: -8.808065, 13.232689
“Champêtre Entertainment” by Zhang Xiaowu: Contemporary Rural Lives in Wenzhou: 27.778645, 120.650826
“Hangzhou House” by Li Qing: Globalization is an Idea: 30.275674, 120.150486
Photographic Reflections of/on Urbanity: The Creative Resilience of Java’s Slums: -7.801140, 110.365391