Exploring how China’s rural homes, once deeply connected to their environment, are being replaced by concrete structures, and the craftsmanship lost in the process.
Wow. This is really good. I've got a mountain of general notes on rural housing, but haven't ever put it all together into a coherent essay.
One of the (depressing) things I see everywhere in Hubei is the standard concrete box floor plan (1st fl. center entry/parking/utility, 2nd fl. and higher floors living space)...OK, everyone is allowed to do what they want with floor plans... but with bizarre faux Western referenced architectural details slapped on as decoration. Turned spindle balustrades everywhere, goofy ornate baroque rococo window details, utterly inappropriate dentil and architrave details, concrete fluted columns mixing Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian details in the capitals, columns with no entasis, etc., etc. Sometimes the details are painted gold, and if not gold, some bright color.
All of which is ok if that's what someone wants, but it's a little depressing when there are so many traditional Chinese architectural details that could be applied.
The larger issue is one of building science. The original architectural designs employed materials that, while not necessarily keeping water out, at least allowed drying. Pure lime parging on the exterior of rammed earth/mud brick/masonry unit construction worked remarkably well as it had for a couple thousand years. I'm seeing the old structures that survived now eschewing lime and instead being coated with elastomeric barrier paints that retain moisture, not allowing the buildings to dry.
Cast concrete has specific performance characteristics, one of them being they are reservoir materials, meaning they absorb and retain water. This is fine if you use appropriate sealants that allow vapor movement and drying capability. We have those sealants. The problem is everyone is applying high tech elastomeric barrier sealants thinking they're just going to seal all water out, not understanding that these materials do allow incremental moisture in, but retain the moisture and do not let it dry. The worst are the "vapor barrier sandwich" with sealant on both the exterior and the interior.
Western building methods made this same mistake all through the 90's and early aughts, and now the same thing is happening in China. We know exactly how it works. It doesn't work. Or, more accurately, it retains moisture and in the long term you get remarkable amounts of mold and poor indoor air quality (IAQ). Expect this to be an issue that folks start understanding in the future. I'm seeing it now in urban settings where they glue the fake brick onto concrete substructures, and the fake brick flakes off after a few years because it doesn't allow drying.
(My career was spent in building performance analysis. These new rural buildings are problematic beyond just their lamentable design aesthetic and loss of traditional cultural heritage.)
Thanks for the fantastic breakdown—really appreciate you sharing your expertise. I share many of your concerns, especially the slapdash application of faux-Western aesthetics. That said, as I touched on in my article, I do sympathise with the rationale for leaving the old houses behind. Are you seeing any alternative approaches that work better, or is this just the dominant trend everywhere?
It’s the trend. Farmers are nothing if not practical, and concrete is practical. We’re only going to see traditional houses in restored and renovated tourist locations. In Hubei, they’re doing a decent job of it, so we might as well get used to it. There’s still a few traditional Tujia style houses in Xuen’en, but they’ll go away when the old people die. The kids left a long time ago.
Huangshan has some fantastic houses in Bishan and Nanping that are now B&B’s and restored 2nd homes for rich Shanghai people. Wuyuan County has the same thing. At least people are living in them.
This is a great piece thanks Nathan. My father restores 老房子 from Jiangsu, in Hangzhou, and I am trying to make a documentary about the process and his endeavours across 25 years. If you have other insights pls do share
Thanks, Ruby—really appreciate that! Your father’s work sounds commendable, especially with the way development pressures are changing places like Hangzhou. A documentary like that is exactly the kind of thing I geek out on! I’d love to hear more as it comes together, and I'm sure readers of This Week in Rural China would too—do let me know if you’ve got something to share either now or down the line.
Excellent article. It's very sad to see the loss of traditional architecture in towns, cities and rural areas, replaced with meaningless blocks of concrete sameness. As you mentioned, traditional structures are often only refurbished for the purpose of tourism. Many major cities have destroyed the old areas, to be replaced with reconstructed "old towns". Awful, really.
One small comment - please refer to Mongolian dwellings as ger - "yurt" is a russian word. Mongolian people call their homes "ger". Thanks.
That was really interesting, especially seeing the types of dwellings different communities had. I have some confidence that China will preserve some, and incorporate old techniques and looks into, newer communities.
Wow. This is really good. I've got a mountain of general notes on rural housing, but haven't ever put it all together into a coherent essay.
One of the (depressing) things I see everywhere in Hubei is the standard concrete box floor plan (1st fl. center entry/parking/utility, 2nd fl. and higher floors living space)...OK, everyone is allowed to do what they want with floor plans... but with bizarre faux Western referenced architectural details slapped on as decoration. Turned spindle balustrades everywhere, goofy ornate baroque rococo window details, utterly inappropriate dentil and architrave details, concrete fluted columns mixing Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian details in the capitals, columns with no entasis, etc., etc. Sometimes the details are painted gold, and if not gold, some bright color.
All of which is ok if that's what someone wants, but it's a little depressing when there are so many traditional Chinese architectural details that could be applied.
The larger issue is one of building science. The original architectural designs employed materials that, while not necessarily keeping water out, at least allowed drying. Pure lime parging on the exterior of rammed earth/mud brick/masonry unit construction worked remarkably well as it had for a couple thousand years. I'm seeing the old structures that survived now eschewing lime and instead being coated with elastomeric barrier paints that retain moisture, not allowing the buildings to dry.
Cast concrete has specific performance characteristics, one of them being they are reservoir materials, meaning they absorb and retain water. This is fine if you use appropriate sealants that allow vapor movement and drying capability. We have those sealants. The problem is everyone is applying high tech elastomeric barrier sealants thinking they're just going to seal all water out, not understanding that these materials do allow incremental moisture in, but retain the moisture and do not let it dry. The worst are the "vapor barrier sandwich" with sealant on both the exterior and the interior.
Western building methods made this same mistake all through the 90's and early aughts, and now the same thing is happening in China. We know exactly how it works. It doesn't work. Or, more accurately, it retains moisture and in the long term you get remarkable amounts of mold and poor indoor air quality (IAQ). Expect this to be an issue that folks start understanding in the future. I'm seeing it now in urban settings where they glue the fake brick onto concrete substructures, and the fake brick flakes off after a few years because it doesn't allow drying.
(My career was spent in building performance analysis. These new rural buildings are problematic beyond just their lamentable design aesthetic and loss of traditional cultural heritage.)
Thanks for the fantastic breakdown—really appreciate you sharing your expertise. I share many of your concerns, especially the slapdash application of faux-Western aesthetics. That said, as I touched on in my article, I do sympathise with the rationale for leaving the old houses behind. Are you seeing any alternative approaches that work better, or is this just the dominant trend everywhere?
It’s the trend. Farmers are nothing if not practical, and concrete is practical. We’re only going to see traditional houses in restored and renovated tourist locations. In Hubei, they’re doing a decent job of it, so we might as well get used to it. There’s still a few traditional Tujia style houses in Xuen’en, but they’ll go away when the old people die. The kids left a long time ago.
Huangshan has some fantastic houses in Bishan and Nanping that are now B&B’s and restored 2nd homes for rich Shanghai people. Wuyuan County has the same thing. At least people are living in them.
This is a great piece thanks Nathan. My father restores 老房子 from Jiangsu, in Hangzhou, and I am trying to make a documentary about the process and his endeavours across 25 years. If you have other insights pls do share
Thanks, Ruby—really appreciate that! Your father’s work sounds commendable, especially with the way development pressures are changing places like Hangzhou. A documentary like that is exactly the kind of thing I geek out on! I’d love to hear more as it comes together, and I'm sure readers of This Week in Rural China would too—do let me know if you’ve got something to share either now or down the line.
Yes! I can share a trailer/sizzle reel I made!
Excellent article. It's very sad to see the loss of traditional architecture in towns, cities and rural areas, replaced with meaningless blocks of concrete sameness. As you mentioned, traditional structures are often only refurbished for the purpose of tourism. Many major cities have destroyed the old areas, to be replaced with reconstructed "old towns". Awful, really.
One small comment - please refer to Mongolian dwellings as ger - "yurt" is a russian word. Mongolian people call their homes "ger". Thanks.
That was really interesting, especially seeing the types of dwellings different communities had. I have some confidence that China will preserve some, and incorporate old techniques and looks into, newer communities.