Internationality and Identity——The search for a contemporary design idiom in China.pdfVIP

The diverse cultural landscapes in China such as the numer- ous rice terraces are the result of centuries-long cultivation. 66 Antje Stokman, Stefanie Ruff Internationality and Identity Garden design has a long tradition in China. Modern land- scape architecture is still searching to develop its own style between traditional examples and international monotony. Projects by the office Turenscape demonstrate elements of a contemporary yet autonomous language of design. hina is known for the age-old art of planning painterly gardens Cwhich look like three-dimensional paintings, symbols of harmo- ny between nature and man. China, the fourth-largest country on earth, is also known for a large variety of spectacular cultural land- scapes which have evolved over centuries of adapting the way land is used to its many different natural conditions and climatic zones. Extensive knowledge of nature’s cycles and integrating man into these cycles has flowed into the design of the landscape. Historians also agree that by continually clearing, terracing, turning the soil, planting and irrigating, the Chinese have influenced their environment in a more long-lasting way than any other nation. Because of the current tendencies in city development – the con- struction industry is booming and everywhere skyscrapers, fashionable residential districts, software parks and shopping centers are springing up – the landscape is being developed at a rate never experienced before, causing an increasingly damaging impact on the environment. Every- thing seems possible, and at a dizzying rate. Environmental and recre- ational consciousness is increasing along with rising levels of income, prosperity and education. The need for an enduring form of organiza- tion and design of urban spaces is growing steadily. What options exist for the professi