Being criticized during the Cultural Revolution was no fun. People would get a sign around their neck stating what they were accused of, things such as 'anti-revolutionary' or 'rightist'. Many people were maltreated and criticized to such an extent they commited suicide.
Nowadays their porcelain images have become popular gadgets at the antique market - China's recent history commercialized ...
Architectural restoration in China is not so much about ‘dusting off’ and preserving the old original. It often means to tear old buildings down and build new ones according to traditional methods and standards. The magic of this system lies in the knowledge - even in today's modern China - of ancient handicrafts. Pingyao is one of the cities being 'restored'.
A scripture on architecture dating back to the Tang dynasty (618-907) describes into detail how wood should be treated, measured and prepared for the complex roof structures, how stone should be dealt with and what the building standards are for each single step of erecting a traditional building. For ages and ages traditional architecture is executed in exactly the same way, until today.
During the planned economy all Chinese brands referred to communist society: 'liberation', 'red flag' or 'east wind'.
These blue trucks could at one time be seen all over China. After the opening up of China internationalization gave rise to many new Chinese brands. This brand survived the storm of innovation: 'Dongfeng' or 'East wind'.
One of the first pictures I posted on this blog 'back to work today!' was taken in the Qianmen area (前门南大街), South of the Tiananmen Square. This picture is taken before the big tear down began. One of the first signs when an area will be torn down: iron poles and iron screen are put up to block the area.
Next the whole neighborhood is plastered with this sign: 拆 'tear down'.
Reading Guo Xiaolu's '20 fragments of a ravenous youth' brought back memories of China a long time ago: the social pressure of the communist system and the all-embracing control over the individual, the harshness of life in China. Times - about 2 decades ago - when China looked like this:
Not only architecture has changed the face of China over the past few decades, infrastructure is another: new roads with new busses, new cars, new trucks, harbors with new ships, railroad tracks with new trains, airports with new airplanes. This railroad track is being constructed in the deserts of Xinjiang.
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