VRA 2021 Session: With a Critical Eye: Analyzing Impact of Visual Resources

1. The Signature Facade: The Construct of Contemporary “Chineseness”
in the Cross-Cultural Circulation of an Image
Dijia Chen
University of Virginia, School of Architecture
03/25/2021

2. The Image

3. Exhibition Site Photo, “TU MU: Young Architecture of China” Exhibition, Berlin, 2001
Catalogue of “TUMU:
Young Architecture of
China” Exhibition, Berlin,
2001

4. Taoyuan Postgraduate Dormitory of Nanjing University , Zhang Lei, 2001

5. The Stories

6. Zhang Lei (1964 - ), Chinese Architect Nanjing University School
Of Architecture

7. Taoyuan Postgraduate Dormitory of Nanjing
University , Zhang Lei, 2001

8. Eduard Koegel, German Curator The façade drawing of Taoyuan Postgraduate Dormitory, 2000

9. “TUMU”‘’s catalogue featuring Zhang Lei’s other projects, 2001

10. Hans Stimmann speaking at the opening ceremony
of “TUMU”, Aedes, Berlin, 2001
Local newspaper reporting “TUMU”, 2001

11. Luyeyuan Stone Sculpture Art Museum, Liu Jiakun, Chengdu,
Sichuan, China
Xishu Bookstore, Yungho Chang, Beijing, China

12. “It is a strange feeling to see the image of Zhang Lei's
dormitory…stylistically mediates between works by Aldo Rossi and Hans
Kollhoff”
“The expansion of the universities also includes their architecture
departments…a "brilliant white masterpiece with surprising spatial
quality" has arisen”

13. Cover and Inner Pages of Bauwelt 35.2001, 2001

14. Ulf Meyer, “Studentenwohnheim der Nanjing-Universität,”
Bauwelt no.35(2001): 28-29.
…life is subject to almost military regulations. Privacy is very limited,
almost everything takes place collectively. The rooms in the dormitory
hardly differ from each other. Dormitories must therefore be pragmatic,
efficient and as simple as possible in their construction.
The coarse wooden shutters provide ventilation, sun and privacy protection
and create a moving play on the otherwise strict facade. In the lower, fixed
area, the two-part shutters conceal the small air conditioning units…In
the upper area the shutters can be opened. They are made of a fast-
growing wood and cost only half as much as comparable shutters made of
aluminum. The processing and impregnation derived from traditional boat
building techniques.

15. The Obsession

16. Image Posted on ABBS Architecture Forum, and Relevant Discussions, 2001

17. Comments from the ABBS architectural forum, 2001
“it is already a huge step for Chinese contemporary architecture”
“fluttering musical notes on a plain white wall…”
“stylish but redundant”
“looks like pictures in the European architecture magazines but is culturally
inappropriate for China.”
“An ugly contemporary Chinese lady who suddenly dresses up as an exotic
western woman from over 50 years ago.”

18. Comments from the ABBS architectural forum, 2001
As a resident of the dorm, I think it is very poorly designed.
First of all, the lighting… This building has rooms on both north and south, so the walkways are dim. To compensate, the designers
installed glass on the walls of each room facing the hallway, which greatly damaged privacy. A glance down the hallway tells which room
is empty. The balcony inexplicably used wooden shutters that blocked a lot of light, even if they were all open. The toilets take up quite a bit
of balcony space, resulting in doors and windows that are only half the size of regular old dormitories. The interior is dim. Especially the
one with its back to the toilet and no sunlight all day long. Lights need to be on all day…
The bad ventilation makes it unbearable on the extremely hot and humid summer days in Nanjing. The hallway windows are enclosed
and not airy. With only windows at each end, it is difficult to ventilate such a long corridor. The ventilation in the dormitories was also
bad. The balcony was flanked by toilets, and only single-sided ventilation is blocked by a shuttered window. The wind coming in is again
blocked by the sliding windows. As for the back of the toilet, there isn't a single breeze. Even facing the south balcony, the hanging
laundry rarely has the sun.
The interior design is problematic too. Why do two dorms share one balcony? Does anyone like to share their balcony with others?
Toilets are pumping loudly, and unless everyone is sleeping and getting up at the same time, one person going to the bathroom will
definitely wake up two dorms. The sink are small and hotel-sized, but we don’t have other spots to do our laundry...And it has to be
shared by three people.
I think the design should be more about practicality, not just fancy appearance. And the leaky shoe closet on the balcony really confused
me, but now I know, it's Nordic style.

19. Façade of Taoyuan Postgraduate Dormitory, Nanjing, 2001 Plan of of Taoyuan Postgraduate Dormitory, Nanjing, 2001

20. Report of the 2002 WA Chinese
Architectural Award, WA, 2002

21. Milan, 2005
Rotterdam, 2006
Paris, 2003

22. Beatriz Colomina, "The Exhibitionist House," At the End
of the Century: One Hundred Years of Architecture,
Harry N. Abrams (1998): 126-165.
“Experimentation in exhibitions always becomes collective in the end, as
other architects pick up ideas, work on them, and then themselves
generate responses by other architects in different exhibitions. Such is the
nature of architectural discourse.”

23. The Architect

24. “What I learnt from the exhibition is that, material is so important! They (the
German curators and critics) put so much emphasis on material. An average building
with good combination of material easily grasp their eyes.”
Zhang Lei, 2019
“The exhibition was a crucial turning point in Zhang Lei’s career as a practitioner.
Formerly his work vacillated between high-quality small-scale cultural projects and
mundane, practical, large-scale state-commissioned buildings. After the exhibition, he
had a clearer idea of what he wants to pursue with his life, and focused on quality design
up till now.”
Zhu Jingxiang, 2019
“You don’t know what the experience meant for the Chinese architects at that time.
Nowadays it’s very common for Chinese artists and architects to exhibit their works
abroad. But in 2001, being invited to an European exhibition was like entering the book
of architectural history.”
Wang Jiahao, 2019

25. Special Issue on Zhanglei’s
Material Volition, WA, 2011

26. Staff Residence of Dongguan Institute of Technology, Zhang Lei, 2004
Nanjing University Library Renovation, Zhang Lei, 2002
University Student Activity Center, Zhang Lei, 2003

27. “Wood-Shutter Zhang”
Jia Zhang, "The Architectural Simplicity of
‘Wood-Shutter Zhang’." Real Estate Guide 21
(2004): 40.

28. The Signature Facade: The Construct of Contemporary “Chineseness”
in the Cross-Cultural Circulation of an Image
Dijia Chen
University of Virginia, School of Architecture
03/25/2021