Beijing Forbidden City

Beijing
and the
Forbidden City

The northern
capital
Beijing

The Great Wall
forms the
northern
boundary
The Great Wall

The Great Wall—
tested
(as depicted by Far Side)
The Great Wall

The Forbidden City
Birdseye
drawing of
Forbidden
City
Bacon, p. 244

The Forbidden City
“First, the capital should be laid out as a square, surrounded
by a city wall; each side should extend 9 li (1 li = 1/3 mile)
and contain three city gates.
Second, within the city there should be nine longitudinal and
nine latitudinal thoroughfares, each consisting of three
chariot lanes.
Third, in the center of the capital is the Imperial Palace of
the emperor. On the left side of the imperial Palace is the
‘Tai Miao,’ where the emperor pays homage to his
ancestors.
On the right side is the ‘She-ji Tan,’ where he worships the
gods of soil and grain.”

Aerial view of the
Forbidden City
Beijing

The Forbidden City

The Forbidden City

The Forbidden City
One of the gates to
Forbidden City

The Forbidden City
Symbolic
names

The Forbidden City
The Chinese had a codified concept of the ideal city:
- square
- regular
- oriented to the cardinal points
- had left and right sides
- gates at key points
Temples were located at key points:
- east was Altar to the Sun
- west was Altar to the Moon
- south was Temple of Agriculture
and Temple of Heaven
Nothing was on the north side; the barbaric side

The Forbidden City
The throne

The Forbidden City
Symbolic
significance
of roofs

The Forbidden City
View of roofs

The Forbidden City
A library compound
in the Forbidden City

The Forbidden City
Roof details

The Forbidden City
“Ming Beijing is a striking example of the city’s
ability to intensify culture. Beijing was a symbolic
world, a whole city built upon the cultural themes
of harmony with nature, security, and power.
Each ‘layer of the onion’ reemphasized the whole
and led to the vital, omnipotent center, the
emperor.
“This particular symbolism probably means little
to us, but we can imagine what it meant to the
Chinese. In a similar manner, out cities transmit
and magnify our culture... What might such
constructions say about what is culturally
important to us?”
Spates and Macionis, p. 196

The Forbidden City
View Video

The Forbidden City
Tian-An Men Square
under the emperors

View of square
Tian-an Men Square

Comparison
of traditional
to Communist
Tian-an Men Square

Tian-an Men Square becomes “green”
For the past 50 years Tiananmen Square has been the nearest thing the Chinese
Communist party has had to holy ground. The plaza was created after Mao
Zedong's Communists came to power in 1949. It is the plaza that Mao built,
famed for its rallies during the Cultural Revolution.
Ma Yansong, an award-winning urban planner, says the grey concrete symbol
of China's red politics should be given a green makeover. To heighten
awareness about the environment, he believes the Beijing square should be
transformed into a park and forest.

Tian-an Men Square becomes “green”
The architect believes Tiananmen Square need not be considered sacrosanct,
because its origins are relatively recent and foreign. Copying Red Square in
Moscow, it was designed for military parades and giant public rallies. But this
function is, he says, outdated.
However, his plan for Tiananmen is too controversial for the authorities. The
mainland media have already been told not to publish images of his green model.
Said one official, "Tiananmen Square is a sensitive topic because use of this space
for national events. In the long term, I think Tiananmen Square will keep its
original function. ”

Beijing Olympics 2008

Density in Hong Kong (Xiangong)

Shanghai, Pudong District

Chinese Mega-City

Andrew Armbruster in China

Andrew Armbruster:
Undergrad Symposium

Andrew Armbruster:
Semester in France

Andrew Armbruster:
New town model

These Designs Incorporated
Perennial Philosophies That Emphasized Harmony

The Chinese City as a Scroll
Relate Classical Chinese Space to the
Unfolding of a Chinese Scroll Painting

The Chinese City as a Scroll

The rationalist European approach
to space is quite different.