Our last day with the Chinese students

Tianjin Eye

Today the group had the opportunity to do some last minute touring of Tianjin. One group traveled to the Tianjin eye, a large ferris wheel mounted atop a bridge. Others went to go see the Olympic buildings in Tianjin.


Tianjin Olympic Sports Center Stadium

We also gathered with the Tianjin architecture students for the last time. We first met at an authentic hot pot restaurant near Tianjin University’s campus. The hot pot style of eating is very unique, characterized by everyone sitting around a table and eating from a steaming pot in the middle. Each person selects morsels of prepared raw food from plates scattered around the table, place them in the pot, wait for them to cook, fish them out of the soup, dip them in a preferred sauce, and then eat them hot. After finishing up our meal at the Chinese restaurant the American students took the Chinese students to an American owned and operated bar. The Chinese students were introduced to a wide range of American delicacies like onion rings, chips and salsa, and margaritas. Everyone had a great time playing liar’s dice, foosball, and darts. The night ended with a lot of fond farewells and plans to meet again when the Chinese students travel to Nebraska.

Dragon and Elsa vs Phish and Josh showing off their skills at foosball

Final Presentation with Students

Xwinston Yan, Professor Tom Laging, Wu Lei and Hu Ying of KX Design, and the students who worked on this project

Ten days of collaborative work between the University of Tianjin students and University of Nebraska students have yielded four site proposals that could be categorized into preservation, central park, arts corridor, and car-free development. The productivity this week was not as rapid as when we are situated in a familiar studio environment and our communication isn’t always centered on an architectural standpoint. We have been exposed to an entirely different studio atmosphere where we are still trying to understand each other’s culture, studio habits, approach to problems and way in which problems are addressed. becomes the primary learning experience.

Professor Paulo and Tom discussing project will all students

The end of our stay here concluded with a digital presentation of the progress of each group and their vision for the redevelopment or renewal of our site. Our groups had the opportunity to present to Tom, Xwinston Yan, and continually influential and dedicated member of this exchange program, Paulo Genovese and Wu Leie from Beijing’s KX International Design and Planning office and Hu Ying from the KX Tianjin Office. All had excellent thoughts on how our projects developed and where we might look to strengthen our views. This critique was more formal considering our audience and each and every member of our diverse group was eager to present their contributions to the jury. This truly illustrated the cooperation we were able to achieve with one another and the architectural dialogue that the two cultures were able to reach. It also gave the Tianjin students a basis of understanding of how our critiques are set up and the outside jury members that are ever present and appreciated for their time commitment to the educational spectrum.


Presentation Group

Though the final presentation in Tianjin is complete the relationships we established as designers and friends will continue and as our studios move ahead separately we expect to keep in contact with the development of our Tianjin partners.

Visiting Scott’s Office in Tianjin

Wu, Lei visiting with us government development strategies

On Tuesday the group was fortunate to visit Scott’s Tianjin office located near our hotel. Wu Lei, executive principal, gave us a tour of the office and showed some of the firm’s recent work. He offered the group insights into the reality of being an architect in China. He spoke about how the market in China is developer driven and the role the architect plays within that system. The group was intrigued by Wu Lei’s many stories about working in the field and getting commissions in China. We are very thankful to Wu Lei for taking the time to introduce the firm to us.

Working Days

An Evening with our classmates

While in Tianjin we were fortunate enough to work alongside architecture students from Tianjin University. After the initial confusion of attempting to illustrate the project to all of them at once with a severely hindering language barrier, we began to communicate in small groups. The UNL students were divided into groups of three, and then paired with two to three Tianjin University students. Talking with the students one-on-one, we were surprised at their impressive grasp of the English language.

The views of the Tianjin students greatly affected some of our previous work and served to guide the project in a much more appropriate direction. Some groups were convinced another site visit was imperative in order to identify specific historical structures and culture that may be worth preserving. During the week we were able to meet the students in the evening for several hours each night to present ideas and further develop design strategies. The dynamic perspective that our Tianjin counterparts provided us is invaluable to the success of our projects. Interacting at such a personal level was an enlightening experience, and the bonds of friendship formed won’t be forgotten.

Pingyao (Ancient Walled City)

An ancient well-preserved city in the Shanxi Province of China, Pingyao is an example of urban planning and the evolution of architecture over 2,700 years. We have had the opportunity to visit and explore this tiny town with a large city wall surrounding it for five days, four nights. Staying in a courtyard house made into a hotel allowed us to begin to see how families lived in these communities.


Yi De Hotel courtyard, rooms


Yi De Hotel, courtyard to rooms.

Pingyao was added to the UNESCO's World Heritage List on Dec. 31st 1997. The World Heritage Committee stated, “the Ancient City of Ping Yao is an outstanding example of a Han Chinese city of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (14th-20th centuries) that has retained all its features to an exceptional degree and in doing so provides a remarkably complete picture of cultural, social, economic, and religious development during one of the most seminal periods of Chinese history.”


View on South Street of Ancient City Building

During the time spent in Pingyao we were able to observe buildings under construction and restoration, daily life without cars, town layout, and gain an appreciation for ancient China and its people.


Building restoration, Building finished with details, Courtyard house construction

Construction techniques are easy to observe and details can be seen in progress and in finished stages throughout Pingyao. The city is caught in a time with no modern glass covered skyscrapers just over the wall. We noticed that the materials used hold up well to the environment and tend to look even better over time. Unlike the dirty buildings we find in large Tianjin. The interesting points of the town were: the layout of large and narrow streets that had nods at some intersections or on the street. Being contained within 12 meter high walls gives a sense of place and direction when you can look at the boundary to locate your position.


Pingyoa City Wall inside city.

Included in our trip to Pingyao was visiting two houses that are popular for their many courtyards. The first house was the Wang Family Courtyard with 88 courtyards and 776 rooms. It was a great experience to be able to move through the houses and explore.

Paulo's lecture of 'Nothing'

Professor Paulo presenting slide (Cognitive Process & Mental Structures)

Pingyao was our next trip within China that was recommended by Paulo, and after a rushed preparation over the weekend; Paulo had prepared an 8am lecture prior to our departure. Based on “Nothing”, an interesting topic about Chinese Culture that focuses on the negative spaces and patterns of traditional Chinese architecture and its applications to modern architecture.

After the lecture we boarded taxis set for the airport, only to discover that our 11:55 flight was canceled and we had to rush to catch an earlier flight. Thanks to the frantic driving skills of our cab drivers, we arrived at the airport with minuets to spare, ran through the airport, and within minutes were in the skies for our weekend study in the walled town of Pingyao.

Upon arrival at the airport our guide who spoke no English greeted us. She then escorted us to the bus we would have for the afternoon. We stopped at the Whang House, a large home the size of a small community containing, 80 courtyards throughout the compound. The courtyards were amazing, each different from the one before. The ancient structures gave a glimpse as to how life must have been in feudal-China.

After a fast lunch of unusual and interesting dishes at a Chinese truck stop, similar to a typical high school cafeteria with mounds of food and lunch trays, our guide motioned that we where on the last leg of the journey to Pingyao.

Presentation Day

Scott Killinger giving his thoughts on the project so far, and feedback of the presentation

After visiting the site we have all been affected and considering the designers roll in the lives of a vibrant social network within this community. Personal interaction with the area and its people is a vital component for starting design considerations. Following the site visit, we were divided equally into three groups, to begin schematic planning and design, before we met with the Tianjin students. After a critique in the morning with Tom to discuss our ideas, we had feedback before we presented our ideas to the Chinese students and faculty. The packed lecture hall was filled with students, our future Chinese partners, Professor Laging and Scott Killinger. This was the first time that Scott had seen any of our ideas since we presented our research and programming document to him in Lincoln.

The event started off with Professor Laging’s lecture about several urban design sketch problems that he has been involved with in New Mexico. His lecture helped to frame many of our views to our design problem, and offer an overview of the design process we would take. Within our class groups of three students, we each presented to the Chinese students. We were lucky to have Scott Killinger in the audience and we were all thankful for his feedback, on our development, progress, and future considerations.

Introduction to Tianjin University

View looking toward the campus gate

Today we had the opportunity to meet with the Chinese students and faculty we would have contacts with. After a warm welcome from their College Dean, we were guided on a tour of the campus. Tianjin University we found to be a very planned and elegant campus. Ponds and bridges with tree and flower lined sidewalks axially divide the space with large classroom buildings on either ends. One of the buildings we found to be most special was the literature and gallery building.

At the end of the ponds, centrally located is the architecture building. Following the tour of the campus, we were invited to a welcome banquet. Many of the Chinese students were able to join us, enjoying many toasts with rice wine and local cuisine.

Tianjin Site Visit

View of Hutongs near the river

Today marked the first trip to the site. By subway, the group traveled through Tianjin and arrived three to four blocks away from our destination. After a short walk through an old neighborhood of four to five story decaying apartments as well as an earthy market that consumed an entire street. In this market you could find anything from fruits, vegetables, fresh meats, and other items like clothing and trinkets. Although this market was in poor condition it is still vibrant and felt like the backbone of the nearby community.

At the end of the market stood our site stretching northward. We broke into several groups, knowing the site covered a large area, and mapped out walking plans for each. One group would follow the river that binds our site to the east, another would travel along the west boundary, the third would take a zigzag route through the center of the site.

The site as a whole was in poor condition. The hutongs were made of brick and concrete. They were linked together by a network of small paths that are not large enough to accommodate an automobile. Larger apartment buildings that are 7 to 8 stories lined the southern part of the site and were also in major disrepair. An automobile accessible road stretched along the river, unpaved and rough, it was the only major access into the site.

One aspect that brings some color and warmth into the site was the growing of vegetables, trees, and vines along the roofs and walls of the hutongs. These gardens and green spaces could be found all throughout the hutongs, but were not evident in the taller apartments due to lack of outdoor space. Although the homes are aged the residents are very pleasant and openly welcome. The people were very clever in their space management and fully utilized their private space. Our visit brought smiles, waves and laughter. The site was not a scary place but one that is in disrepair after 60 years of intense use.

As the site visit came to a close one more area was investigated. A large park that borders our site to the North had an enormous amount of green space. It was quite similar to everything else in the area, showing signs of neglect and age. A carnival at the center of the park for children drew quite a crowd but for the most part the park was desolate compared to its size. After the park, the group boarded the subway back to the hotel no doubt all wondering how to bring modern life to the neighborhood while keeping its values intact.

First Day in Tianjin

After leaving the Huangshan Golf Hotel we ended up in the airport, were we were to depart to Tianjin. We arrived in Tianjin shortly after nightfall, then we took a bus into the city to our hotel.

Our home for the next week will be the Tianjin First Hotel located in the British Concession. As the fourth largest city in China, Tianjin is home to fourteen million people. We are located in the city center, so transportation has been quite easy either by taxi or metro. In close proximity to our hotel is Scott Killinger’s office as well as a small park where locals of all ages play ping pong and Chinese Checkers or exercise. We have found that streets are intimidating to cross because of their size. Tianjin has an interesting night life, especially since we arrived on National Day, October 1st, (a seven day “holiday” that is similar to our Independence Day) in which many Chinese travel around the country for leisure and family. The Chinese enjoy some of the same activities that we do including karaoke bars (KTV), dance clubs, movies, and internet cafes.