Workers' New Village: The Spatial Sample of Cities in Planned Economy China

The Booklet

This booklet records Xu Hanwen's postgraduate architecture study in AA Projective Cities - Studio 2: Scales: From the Room to the City. In brief, questions emerging from the Architecture of Collective Living, provide a typological and intellectual framework to study this relationship in Term 2. Consequently, Studio 2 builds on the previously introduced concept of formative diagrams about fundamental types as the basis to analyse models of collective living and forms of sharing, while the idea of type and typology is expanded to the study of the city. The city, in other words, is defined by typological conflicts and transformations that arise when types encounter a specific context and become materially realised. By uncovering these conflicts and transformations of the built form and the necessary scalar negotiations and translations, a specific idea of the city emerges with intrinsic formal, spatial, and social relationships.

The studio begins with selecting and analysing an existing or proposed urban plan for a contemporary city or region in which the building types chosen in Studio 1 play a significant and formative role. The aim is for the students to engage actively with a selected case study and to contact local authorities, collective architects, planners and researchers, formulating a 'live project'.

Following the primary analysis of the urban plan, the relationship of housing types to its conceptualisation, organisation, and formation is studied. How does the generality of type adapt to socio-cultural, economic, and political contexts? This study emphasises whether a typological transformation results from a typological conflict created by an insertion into a context, or a strategic argument and its possibilities within a context. This expands the conclusions of Studio 1 and requires a good knowledge of the urban plan's physical, social, and cultural context.

In the end, a design exercise will be finished in a month. The design exercise explores cross-scalar relationships between the living units, urban compound (block), neighbourhood, and the city. Therefore, the two fundamental parameters to start with would be selecting a reference city and identifying a subject group, responding to which the formative diagram of the design exercise would be generated. The design would not only respond to the limitations and constraints but also informs a project, addressing inherent conflicts, power relations, social challenges, and environmental issues. The brief should be positioned within thoroughly researched historical and contemporary case studies.

The Author

The author, Xu Hanwen, is an architect, second-rate graphic designer and game script writer. In the mediocre and flat 21st century, the author believes that the field of architecture still needs serious research and deep contextual design. Regrettably, it is that much more than what we are creating in cities today.

Location: Personal website: Email:

London, England hanwenxu.me Hanwenxu721@gmail.com

“A revolution that does not produce a new space has not realized its full potential; indeed it has failed in that it has not changed life itself, but has merely changed ideological superstructures, institutions or political apparatuses. A social transformation, to be truly revolutionary in character, must manifest a creative capacity in its effects on daily life, on language and on space.”

- Henri Lefebvre, the Production of Space

Workers' New Villages are collective housing built by the government to solve the living problem of the working class in planned economic China from 1949 to the 1980s. The meaning of the workers' new village lies in solving the housing problems of the working class as the backbone of the People's Republic of China, significantly improving the living conditions of the lower working people.

Workers' village was one of the most important residential types in China. Take Shanghai for example. From 1952 to 1995, 442 workers' villages were built, with a total floor area of 34.97 million square meters 1. As a typology of a particular era, the workers' new village combines the ideology and planning theory of the era, the typology of workers' new villages aims to establish a "new age" ethic and ideal housing model.

Benedetto Croce said: "all history is contemporary history". The study of workers' new villages is the study of collectivist living in the era of the planned economy in China and also the study of contemporary Chinese cities. Although the construction of the workers' new village was stopped with the reform and opening up in the late 1990s, the planning theory behind it and the corresponding residents' committee system 2 still deeply influences the cities in China today.

1. Theoretical Source of "New Village"

The "New Village" in the History

of the idea

French utopian socialist Charles Fourier proposed to replace the existing social system with the "system of Harmony". He proposed to establish a new social system with the experimental method of organization "Phalanstery".

In Phalanstery, the distinction between city and country is eliminated, and everyone is equal, works together, enjoys the fruits of labour together, and receives free education. It can be regarded as the earliest source of the "new village" idea.

British entrepreneur Robert Owen believes that the environment has an important influence on people's character and mood. The improvement of the living condition will have a positive effect on workers, which in turn increases productivity.

He established a working community in New Lanark, Scotland, which consists of a workers' dormitory surrounded by a natural landscape and various service facilities (kindergarten, bank and hospital).

Fourier's Phalanstery Robert Owen's New Lanark

1902 1918-now China in the 1920s

Russian anarchist socialist Pyotr Kropotkin held the ideas of Anarchic socialism his whole life. Kropotkin believes that in the 20th century, human society should replace individualistic free competition with mutual help and cooperation.

Based on this, he believed that all centralized institutions, such as the government and the church, should be abolished, and society should be formed through communes and workers' selfgoverning enterprises.

Japanese novelist Saneatsu Mushanokōji built the utopia village called Atarashiki-mura in Japan in 1918. In this village, people do not have private property; they work together, consume together and study together.

Saneatsu Mushanokōji thinks that according to collective living, socialism will be built gradually without violent revolution or a massive increase in productivity. The essence of this thought is a kind of utopian socialism.

Pyotr Kropotkin's Mutual Aid Saneatsu Mushanokōji and his Atarashiki-mura Village

The Influence of Saneatsu Mushanokōji's "New Village" in China

"New Village": from Japan to China

The concept of Saneatsu Mushanokōji's "new village" was introduced to China by the Chinese writer Zhou Zuoren during the May 4th Movement and became a popular trend of thought among the new youth who were determined to change the chaotic and impoverished status of China in the 1920s. This idea is essentially utopian socialism, in which socialism can be gradually built by organizing collectivist "new villages" in the countryside (where villagers work, consume and study together) without the need for violent revolution or significant improvement of productivity.

New Village's influence on Mao in youth

The beautiful vision of the new village also strongly influenced Mao Zedong in youth. In his essay, the work of the student in 1919, he thought that in society, there are profound contradictions between school and family, school and society. Students are separated from agricultural production work, resulting in the difference between mental and physical work. To eliminate such differences, he envisioned a new village where families, schools, and society would be integrated:

"Merging many families into a new society. There are many kinds of new society, including public nurseries, public schools, public libraries, public banks, public farms, public consumer societies, public theaters, parks, museums... Members of the new village have a unified schedule of daily activities, sleeping for 8 hours, sightseeing for 4 hours, self-study for 4 hours, study for 4 hours and work for 4 hours..." 1

Therefore, the "new village" is not only a living mode but a new typology of socialist transformation for "villagers" in it from work and life. The influence of this thought can be seen in many political measures (e.g. "danwei" system and workers' new village) taken by MAO Zedong after he became the leader of the People's Republic of China.

Fig. 1.2 A book to introduce Saneatsu Mushanokōji's new village idea in China in 1920s

Fig. 1.3 the Work of Student by Mao, 1919

Before the revolution: the "fake workers' village" in China

Although workers' new village is a new typology that emerged after the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949, the idea of the new village also significantly impacted the society of the Republic of China (1912—1949). Before the socialist revolution, a series of house projects named "villages" were built in Shanghai, China's most intellectually vibrant city. Although these houses are not innovative in terms of typology, they still share many similarities with the idea of the new village in ideology and vision.

1. Pudong Model Labor Village

From 1926 to 1928, sponsored by Shanghai young men's Christian association (YMCA), the architect Zhu Maocheng designed and built 30 houses as "Pudong labour model villages" (about 0.4 hm2) for the working class in Shanghai (Fig. 1.4). Chiang Kai-shek, chairman of the Nanjing Nationalist government, attended the inauguration ceremony and spoke highly of the project. The slogan of the labour model village (fraternity, mutual aid, purity, frugality, temperance) fits well with the government's goal of making the working class a "modern citizen" by improving their living conditions 2

2. Puyi Model Village (Columbia Circle)

In 1928, a private developer from America, Puyi Real Estate Company, developed a new housing project in the western part of Shanghai's public concession. Puyi Model Village covers an area of 4.67 hm2, and all the housing is garden villas. The brochure also features a short poetic passage describing the "green grass, growing trees, blooming flowers, bright sunshine and fresh air" of the "Model Village" (Fig. 1.4). The developer claims that residents could escape the dirty city by living in the beautiful natural landscape and make them more spiritually and morally sound 3 .

3. Civilian Village Project

In 1934, because of natural disasters, Shanghai Mayor Wu Tiecheng organized an expert committee to take charge of plans for the civilian village project. The goal is to build a series of civilian housing to improve the living conditions of Shanghai's lower working class. Pudong model labour village is considered the blueprint for these new projects. Until 1935, four civilian villages were built (Qimei Road, Pushan Road, Damuqiao Road and Zhongshan Road), each of which had 200-300 houses for thousands of residents.

Take the civilian village on Zhongshan road, for example, and this village is composed of a public axis in the shape of a cross. On the east-west axis are large open spaces, green spaces, and public service facilities such as hall, school, fire station and water station. The single-storey house facing south and north has a space of 7m in front and back, which serves as passage and green space (Fig. 1.4).

The Civilizing Mission of the Village

In addition to the three villages, other villages such as rose garden new village, Siwei village and Xinfang village were built during the same period. Although the developers are different (private developers, churches, governments, local unions) and the architectural typology is not innovative, based on the description of physical space, it is easy to find the similar space intention behind them: cleanliness, hygiene and "idyllic scenery".

Under the Nanjing Nationalist system, the new government was eager to establish its legitimacy as the country's ruler by proclaiming a series of moral propositions 4. Zhu Maocheng, the designer of Pudong Labor Village and later the director of the Labor Department of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce

2. Zhiyong Liang, From Village for Commoners to Workers' New Village: the Continual Civilizing Mission of Shanghai's Public Housing, 1927-1951, Time Architecture ,2(2017)

3. Yingchun Li, “New Village”: an Alternative Scope for the Study of Built Environmen, Time Architecture ,2(2017)

4. Christian Henriot, Shanghai 1927-1937: Municipal Power, Locality, and Modernize, trans. Peide Zhang (Shanghai: Shanghai Classics Publishing House, 2004), 165.

of the National Government, attributed the social unrest to the poor living conditions of the workers and advocated improving their living conditions through science, providing education and sharing social rights for workers similar to western country

5. The common naming and spatial intention of "new village" imply that the concept of social transformation from the idea of new village from Japan has not disappeared at all. On the contrary, different social institutions are trying to benefit from this concept.

In the historical development of the "new village", it is not difficult to see the continuity of ideology. The spatial intention of constructing these new villages was the main element for the new Chinese communist government to create socialist living spacesworkers' new villages after the socialist revolution. Although the workers' new village was considered "revolutionary progress" in the new era, it still had a clear development pathway before the regime change in 1949.

Name

Developer

Project Slogan

Typology

Pudong Model Labour Village, 1926

Y.M.C.A. Shanghai

"Fraternity, mutual aid, purity, frugality, temperance"

Single-storey house

labour village before the revolution

Puyi Model Village

Private developer, "Green grass, growing bright sunshine Garden

Village

growing trees,

Garden Lilong

Village Project,

2. Caoyang New Village as Case Study

The Living Form in Planned Econemic Era

The narrow definition of workers' new village

In a narrow sense, the "workers' new village" in this study refers to the residential district for workers built by the communist government in the 1950s and 1960s. The workers' new village's primary significance is to solve the vast working class's housing problems and improve their lives. However, in a broader sense, the object of the "workers' new village" can be understood as the lower class of society, so there is a strong tendency of social fairness.

The definition of workers' new village in the study:

- Invested and governed by government

- Built between the 1950s and 1990s

- For working class

- Complex functions

From workers' houses to everyone's house

After 1949, due to the demands of the new ideology, contemporary Chinese architecture underwent a significant transformation. From residential and public buildings to memorial buildings, the construction methods, architectural forms, and cultural connotations have been affected, and the context of Chinese cities has undergone drastic changes accordingly (Fig. 2.1).

As a new form of living, the "workers' new village" emphasizes collectivism and equality, which profoundly impacted the living pattern and life form after 1949. By the mid-1960s, the meaning of the workers' new village was extended to an enormous scope. The occupation of the residents became much more complicated. Not only the workers but also many cadres and employees moved into the workers' new village (almost all the industries were socialized in 1960s). However, even among different groups, the collectivist living pattern of the workers' new village remains. It was not disintegrated until the end of the 1980s that China began the market economy reform. Therefore, the study of the collective structure of the workers' new village is also the study of the collective living in the planned economy era of China in the past 40 years (the 1950s-1990s).

Fig.

Western-style buildings on Shanghai's Bund are transformed to be 'revolutionary' and 'progressive'

From the construction of the first workers' new village (Caoyang new village) in 1952 to 1978, the workers' new village has always been the main body of Shanghai's urban housing construction (Fig. 2.2, Fig. 2.3). The workers' new village is not only housing construction in the living sector, but also supporting plans for industrial production. Thus, the construction of workers' new villages have been influenced by the relationship between production (industrialization) and consumption (living).

From this contradictory perspective, a representative example (Caoyang new village) can be used to examine how the national economic policy dominated by industrialization was involved in the construction process of Shanghai workers' new village and how the construction of the workers' new village reflected the ideology of socialist city in space practice.

Workers' village

ShantyGarden housingApartment

Lilong (alleyway houses)

Fig. 2.2 The proportion of housing of different types in Shanghai urban area (1950-1978) 1

Construction Area of Workers' Village

Area (million square meters)

Construction Area of Shanghai

Fig. 2.3 Construction of workers' new village and housing in Shanghai over the years (1951-1995) 2

1. The data come from Compilation Committee of Shanghai Residence (1949-1990), 1993, pp. 147.

2. The data come from Compilation Committee of Shanghai Housing Construction Records, 1998, pp. 332-360.

Caoyang New Village as Case Study

In the research, Caoyang New Village in Shanghai is used as the main case study. This is main based on two reasons:

1. Caoyang new village is the first workers' new village built in Shanghai. From 1,002 households when its construction began in 1952, it grew into a residential district with 32,000 households and 100,000 residents in the 1990s 3. It experiences the urbanization of the whole city and the transformation of planning theory in China (Fig. 2.4), representing the development of workers' villages.

2. The Shanghai government highly values Caoyang new village. The government built this village as a model for workers' villages after. It is also the critical propaganda of "the superiority of socialist system" (Fig. 2.5) for the government.

Industrial Production and Natural Life

Industrial life and the time spirit

According to the conclusion drawn above, the logic of the workers' new village is based on the emphasis of industrial production. The spirit of the workers' new village (or the whole of China) was based on noble collectivism: through the promotion of industrial production, the new China would be rapidly industrialized and prosperous (Fig. 2.8), and China will wash away the shame of its recent history.

This spirit is reflected in every aspect of society: workers are regarded as the nation's backbone. In order to enable workers to concentrate on production, the state provided them with better living conditions (i.e., building workers' new villages); personal enjoyment was considered immoral, and people should devote themselves to the "great revival of the nation" (i.e., workers volunteered to work overtime without pay; actively turning down a raise).

Natural life and the idea of the new village

However, the other side of this "industrial life" is the emphasis of the natural living condition. In an article by Wang Dingzeng, the designer of Caoyang new village, he described the critical relationship between the natural landscape and the residence in the design 6. Most of the rivers and streams on the original site were preserved, and the design of the houses and roads corresponded to these rivers (Fig. 2.9) very much. On the scale of the neighbourhood block, though the interior space is narrow because of limitations on construction

costs, it corresponds to the appropriately sized residential green space (Fig. 2.10), which also implies the designer's intention that these public green spaces become gathering places for collective activities.

There is no conflict between industrial production and natural living. It embodies the ideology of the new village inherited from the period before the revolution. In the construction of a series of civilian villages led by the Nanjing Nationalist government in the 1920s, the new government was eager to establish its legitimacy as the ruler of the country by announcing a series of moral claims, such as improving the moral level of residents through the intention of clean, natural and orderly space and equal public space (public hospital, school and auditorium). At the right time, British urbanist Howard's "Garden City" was also introduced to China. The concept of garden city, especially the idea of introducing natural landscape into urban space construction, coincides with the construction of a utopian new village 7

Therefore, the creation of natural landscape and space design in Caoyang new village inherited the spirit of the civilian village or the new village in the old era. The space ideal of equality, justice, cleanliness and hygiene and the concept of garden city are essential parts of the space production of the workers' new village.

2.9 The relationship between houses and river in Caoyang New Village

landscape of the housing block in Caoyang New Village

Four Layers of the Community

Changes in planning theory and spatial practice

As the first and one of the largest workers' villages in Shanghai, Caoyang new village experienced all the changes in planning theory in Chinese cities after 1949. From the "neighbourhood unit" theory from the American sociologist Clarence Perry to the "neighbourhood" influenced by the Soviet Union, and finally, the combination of the two developed "xiao qu planning theory" 8. The spatial design of Caoyang new village clearly shows the differences caused by theoretical changes in different periods, and the change in politics also causes the change in theory. As Henry Lefebvre pointed out, "space is political and ideological. It is significant a product of all sorts of ideologies" 9

These theories continue to influence each other and eventually form a systematic spatial structure. Therefore, the structure of the workers' new village could be divided in a systematic way (Fig. 2.11):

1. housing

2. living unit

3. "xiao qu" (residential compound)

4. residential district

The structure of the research

Next, the spatial logic of the workers' new village will be analyzed according to the four levels, from housing to residential district, and the spatial logic of the workers' new village will be sorted out and how it was combined with the political intention and ideology at that time. In the end, this research brief describes the government-led social management system and explains how the Chinese government creates a new management system to correspond to the new space. As Henry Lefebvre pointed out, the production of space should be matched with the revolution of society. That means the new space should also have the management tool to match it.

Fig. 2.11.1 The planning structure of Caoyang new village, 1958 10

8. The concept of "xiao qu" (Chinese: 小区) planning was introduced by the People's Republic of China from the Soviet Union in 1957. It could also be considered as residential compound or microdistrict in English.

9. Henri Lefebvre, Espace et Politique, trans. Chun Li (Shanghai: Shanghai People's Publishing House, 2015)

10. Dingzeng Wang, Planning and Design of Shanghai Caoyang New Village Residential Area, (1956).

4. residential district

Large public service space: cultural center, hospital, bank, cinema...

3. "Xiao qu"

school, canteen or open space

Public service space: communal bathrooms, markets and grocery stores...

2. living unit

1. housing

Fig. 2.11.2 The planning structure of Caoyang new village, by author

The Planning Level - Housing unit 1 unit

kitchen toilet toilet unit 1`unit

unit

kitchen up stairsup stairs shared private Fig. 2.12.1 elevation and floorplan (type 1), by author

Type 1 - "1002 Household" (1952-1960)

- Shared kinchen and toilet (three families) - No bathroom (public bathroom out of the building)

residence public service

Fig. 2-12-2 Caoyang new village in 1952-1960 (Type1), by author

shared

Fig. 2.13.1

Type 2 - "20,000 Household" (1952-1956)

- Shared

toilet

author

families)

residence residence (before) public service

residence residence (before) public service

Fig. 2.14.2 Caoyang new village in 1958-1961 (Type 3), by author

Fig. 2.15.2 Caoyang new village in 1965-1970 (Type 4), by author

Village

residence residence (before) public service

Conclusion

Although the construction of Caoyang new village lasted for more than 10 years, the common design logic can still be found from the housing of different periods:

1. Because of the limit of construction cost, the interior area is compressed. The only private space is bedroom, living cost is reduced by sharing kitchen, toilet and bathroom (Fig. 2.12.1 to Fig. 2.15.1).

2. When the government allocates houses, neighbors on the same floor are usually colleagues who work in the same factory. In this way, the government tries to create a kind of all-around collective living based on working 11 .

3. Open landscape is arranged outside the house as a place for residents' public activities (Fig. 2.17). Through the compression of the interior and the expansion of the exterior, residents and neighbors are encouraged to share the outdoor space for rest. Over time, this will create a long-term and strong relationship in the community (Fig. 2.16).

4. Due to Shanghai's climate (too much sunshine from the west), most of the houses are laid out in a northsouth orientation (Fig. 2.12.2 to Fig. 2.15.2), with bedrooms placed on the south side to receive moderate amounts of sunlight 12 .

Conclusion

Although the construction of Caoyang new village lasted for more than 10 years, the typical design logic can still be found in the housing of different periods:

1. The interior area is compressed because of the construction cost limit. The only private space is the bedroom. Living cost is reduced by sharing the kitchen, toilet and bathroom (Fig. 2.12.1 to Fig. 2.15.1).

2. When the government allocates houses, neighbours on the same floor are usually colleagues who work in the same factory. In this way, the government tries to create a kind of all-around collective living based on working 16.

3. Open landscape is arranged outside the house for residents' public activities (Fig. 2.17). Residents and neighbours are encouraged to share the outdoor space for rest through the compression of the interior and the expansion of the exterior. Over time, this will create a long-term and strong relationship in the community (Fig. 2.16).

4. Due to Shanghai's climate (too much sunshine from the west), most houses are laid out in a north-south orientation (Fig. 2.12.2 to Fig. 2.15.2), with bedrooms placed on the south side to receive moderate amounts of sunlight 17 .

11. Chen Yang, From Model Community to Monumental Site: a Workers’ Village through History. (Shanghai: Tongji University Press, 2019), pp. 66. 12. Xuan Xiang, The Research of Workers Community Residential Architecture and Outdoor Environment in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai from 1949 to 1978Research Based on Spatial form and Form Characteristics. (2011), pp. 108.

Fig.

The neighbors rested on the lawn of Caoyang new village, 1952

outdoor space as the space for people to gather

Caoyang New Village as Case Study

The school as the central point in the living unit

Above the level of the housing, the basic logic to organize them is usually the school (Fig. 2.18). In a living unit, the school (kindergarten, primary school and high school) is located at the centre of the houses. This phenomenon can be explained for two reasons:

1. Centralizing children in one facility allows their parents to focus on working, which is in line with the social slogan of "all activities serve production" at that time.

2. Workers living in the same living unit usually belong to the same factory. When the adults have a collective living in the factory, their children also have a collective living in the school, and kids bond with their future colleagues at school (Fig. 2.19). It could be considered as the rehearsal of their future life.

2. The Planning Level - Living Unit residence primary school high school kindergarten

Fig. 2.18 Houses form the living unit around kindergarten, primary school and high school, by author

having

collective living in the school as rehearsal

Caoyang

The organization of housing: terraced, enclosed and mixed

The organization of housing could be divided into three types. These types were also wildly used in other workers' new villages later.

1. Terraced form (Fig. 2.20)

The terraced form is the most extensive form of housing organization in Caoyang new village. As mentioned above, the main reason for north-south orientation is to adapt to the sunshine and ventilation of Shanghai. However, on the aesthetic level, the monotonous arrangement may make the terraced form boring, allowing variations of the form to appear (Fig. 2.20, image 2).

2. Enclosed form (Fig. 2.21)

During China's First Five Plan (1953-1957), the Soviet Union provided China with tremendous industrial and technical assistance. China also learned from the Soviet Union in the field of urban planning. The enclosed form of the living block is also learned from the Soviet Union (Fig. 2.23).

The house is arranged around the edge of the road, and the enclosed courtyard is decorated with outdoor activities and a small public green space. However, this layout may cause problems with sunlight and ventilation in the houses on the east-west sides (especially in the climatic of south China). At the same time, the enclosed form cannot fit very well with the original site (Fig. 2.22). Therefore, only a few enclosed living units exist in the northeast Caoyang new village.

3. Mixed form

Towards the end of the first five-year plan, China began to rethink the problem caused by copying the "Soviet model". In this background, mixed form is the creature of terraced form and enclosed form. The mixed form includes both terraced and enclosed forms. It keeps the advantage of both forms and makes the community more reasonable regarding architectural form and actual use.

Although it is hard to see this form in Caoyang new village, it was wildly used in another workers' village during the time (Fig. 2.24).

residence

Fig. 2.20 Terraced living unit in Coayang new village, by author

In the north China, the Soviet block theory is more influential. A large number of workers' village and staff quarter are all designed with the same strategy.

Fig. 2.23.1 The masterplan of Bai Wan Zhuang, Beijing

Fig. 2.23.2 The masterplan of Tie Xi Qu workers' new village, Shenyang

3. The Planning Level - "Xiao Qu" (Residential Compound)

Several living units form the third level of planning in workers' new village - "xiao qu" (or residential compound). Between each living unit, a series of public service spaces are put between them, which include communal bathrooms, markets, oil shop, grain shop and coal shop (Fig. 2.25).

This function is widely used daily, so they are set at the edge of the living unit, the resident could quickly arrive. This spatial layout comes from the investigation of the existing space in the old urban district of Shanghai (lilong, the terrace house) by the planners at that time. The conclusion is to arrange small-scale (flexible), scattered (easy to arrive), diverse (different service), and low-standard (easy to build) functional spaces around the living units to facilitate the lives of residents (Fig. 2.26) 15. In the masterplan of Caoyang new village, it is also easy to find this characteristic (Fig. 2.27). These service spaces and living units form the "xiao qu", which influence the urban planning of China even today.

2.26.1

4. The Planning Level - Residential District

In the largest level, a numbers of xiao qu combine together, and become a large residential district. Caoyang new village is also a residential district which include more than 80,000 residents in it. In the center area of this residential district, a series of complex public service are set here.

In the case of Caoyang new village, this area includes worker’s cultural center, bank, post office, police station and many function else (Fig. 2.29). These function are also necessary in daily life, but residents will not use them very frequently. Therefore, they are put in the middle space, which will not bother the quite and nature environment of living area. At the same tome, they organized the lively core area of the community.

The phased construction of Caoyang new village

As a large residential area from 0 to more than 80,000 residents, the public facilities of Caoyang new village are planned in advance and reserved the places, then built them in batches to avoid waste caused by premature construction. In fact, this process also conforms to the urban planning scale from housing to residential district.

The following illustrates the steps for the development of public facilities in Caoyang new village 17:

Stage 1 (about 4,500 residents)

Public facilities:

1. primary school, market, grain shop, coal shop, kindergarten, grocery, public bathroom

Stage 2 (about 20,000 residents)

Public facilities:

1. primary school, market, grain shop, coal shop, kindergarten, grocery, public bathroom

2. middle school, department store, workers' cultural center, clinic, bank, bookstore, clothing store

Stage 3 (about 50,000 residents)

Public facilities:

1. primary school, market, grain shop, coal shop, kindergarten, grocery, public bathroom

2. middle school, department store, workers' cultural center, clinic, bank, bookstore, clothing store

3. restaurant, drugstore, photo shop, furniture shop, watch shop, hospital, cinema...

kindergarten

primary school high school central area public service

Living unit and

public service space between them, by author

Cultural Center Canteen Cooperatives Cinema

Clinic

Post OfficeBank Police Station

From neighbourhood unit to residential compound theory

In the planning theory of Caoyang new village (and all workers' new villages in China), it can find the evolution of planning theory from "neighbourhood unit" - "Soviet-style block" - "residential district theory". This evolution is based on the change in the political situation and the continuous improvement based on China's actual situation.

1. The founding of the early: the use of neighbourhood unit theory

The concept of neighbourhood unit comes from the 1920s American sociologist Clarence Perry. He suggested subdividing the city into several "neighbourhoods" each neighbourhood configuration has its local community facilities (such as convenience stores, community parks, churches and schools), so each neighbourhood can realize a self-supply of relatives, which is similar to a traditional rural area 18

During the three years from 1949 to 1952, due to the new government's lack of experience in largescale construction, China's new architectural design system was not established, and the Soviet Union's influence on China's culture and technology was relatively weak. Chinese architects naturally used modern architectural design ideas and Western methods to serve the new regime, including neighbourhood units. Wang Dingzeng, the designer of Caoyang new village, said later in an interview, "At that time, we architects who had studied abroad in Europe and the United States, the thing in our mind is the idea of 'neighbourhood unit' prevailing in Europe and the United States, that is, to build public buildings in the centre of the community, such as schools, banks, post offices, and so on, and then build residential buildings around it" 19 .

The profound influence of neighbourhood units can also be seen in the draft plan for Caoyang new village (Fig. 2.30). The planning of Caoyang new village takes Caoyang first village as the centre and gradually expands outwards around this centre. From 1951 to 1977, the construction was divided into four phases: the first phase was built into the first village in 1951-1952; The second phase (1952-1953) saw the completion of the second to sixth villages. The third phase (1956-1958) saw the completion of the seventh to eighth villages. In the fourth phase, in 1977, ninth villages were built 20. In the centre of Caoyang first village, the public facilities include a workers' cultural centre, bank, post office, police station, clinic, cinema, cooperatives and canteen (Fig. 2.29). With these public services, the whole community realize its self-supply of the relative, just like Clarence Perry mentioned in the neighbourhood unit.

2. The first five-year plan: learning from Soviet-style block

During the first five-year plan, China began to learn from "the Soviet model" in science and technology, culture, urban planning and other aspects due to the Soviet Union's tremendous assistance to China. In this context, neighbourhood units were criticized as "capitalist urban planning theory" 21. The block theory from the Soviet Union played an important role.

This design emphasizes geometric symmetry and graphic form, surrounding the block with a centre of public facilities or green space; However, the Soviet-style block would result in insufficient ventilation and sunlight in some of the houses and would have significant limitations in the design combined with the terrain (Fig. 2.22). Therefore, soviet-style blocks are not widely used in southern China, where the four seasons are distinct, and the water network is complex, but many examples were still wildly used in the workers' new villages in northern China (Fig. 2.23).

Therefore, in the case study of Caoyang new village, only a tiny part of the housing in the northeast used the theory of Soviet-style block (Fig. 2.21).

18. Clarence Perry, The Neighborhood Unit, a Scheme for Arrangement for the Family-Life Community. (1929).

19. Dingzeng Wang, Planning and Design of Shanghai Caoyang New Village Residential Area, (1956).

20. The data come from Compilation Committee of Shanghai Housing Construction Records, 1998, pp. 145-146.

21. "In terms of the overall layout of housing, capitalist countries adopt the system of neighborhood units, while the Soviet Union and people's democratic countries adopt the block system... The main difference between the two is that the latter considers the city as a whole, each block is an organic part of the city; while the former has no relation with the city, it's a different institutional response." Tingbao Yang, 1955.

Fig. 2.30.1 The concept of neighbourhood unit by Clarence Perry

Fig. 2.30.2 The use of neighbourhood unit in Caoyang new village

3. The end of the first five-year plan: rethink and residential district theory

At the end of the first five-year plan, China's relationship with its object of study, the Soviet Union, was at odds. At the same time, problems arising from the imbalance of industrial and agricultural development brought about by learning from "Stalin's model" began to emerge. Therefore, the previous practice of "learning from the Soviet Union in an all-round way" began to be reflected nationwide, and the idea of combining the Soviet model with China's actual situation began to be adopted in urban planning.

In this context, the residential district theory came out in China and was considered the embodiment of socialist ideology in urban structure. In practice, however, residential district theory is a neighbourhood unit which is larger and more hierarchical. A residential district usually includes several layers: (housing)living unit - xiao qu - residential district. Each xiao qu has its centre (it can be regarded as a neighbourhood unit), and several xiao qu establish a common regional centre and form a residential district (Fig. 2.31), which could be considered a neighbourhood unit has a more complex function. It is consistent with the communities mentioned above, with different resident sizes corresponding to different types of functional spaces (pp. 49).

primary school public service xiaoqu landscape central area residence

Hierarchy of Spatial Structure: Grassroots Administrative Organization

The revolution of space and the management tool

Henri Lefebvre claims that the production of space should be matched with the revolution of society. That means the new space should also have the management tool to match it. If workers' new village is considered a kind of space revolution, it should have a matched management tool. Otherwise, "the revolution would be incomplete".

Correspondingly, another critical feature of workers' new villages that match their spatial structure is the administrative structure corresponding to each layer of space. In the residential district theory, the socialist residential area and its corresponding "social culture education and living supply" should serve people's "social and political life" 22. In other words, the daily living space of urban residents should be adapted to the country's political life. This relationship is reflected in the hierarchical space and its matching grass-roots administrative organisation in the workers' new village.

Grassroots administrative organisation is to organise streets and neighbourhood committees in each city district. The grass-roots management of each district is responsible to the district government's agencythe sub-district office- and the resident autonomous organisation's specific implementation - the resident's committee (Fig. 2.33). It is responsible for a variety of daily routines, basically covering most of the resident's daily life, such as assisting the police in community security, community health maintenance, mediation of residents' conflicts, charity within the community, family planning affairs, organising residents to participate in social and political activities, etc 23. Under this management system at the grass-roots level, on the one hand, any individuals and events in the residential district and the relevant person in charge of organisation found in space significantly improve the convenience of life. On the other hand, the grass-roots level management so that the control of the government to social and individual increases significantly, which shows the implicit government intention of trying to "plan everything, control everything".

Fig. 2.33: Grassroots Management Systems in Contemporary Chinese Cities, by author agency of administration guidance and jurisdiction

District Ggovernment / Municipal Government

Sub-district Office Residents Committee

Grassroots administrative organization in the case of Caoyang new village

In the case of Caoyang new village, the whole administrative organization could be divided into four layers (Fig. 2.35). With the establishment of eight villages in 1957, Caoyang new village has formed a complete "residential district". Regarding spatial planning, the whole new village (residential district) is divided into eight villages (xiao qu). Each xiao qu comprises several living units, and the living unit has several living combinations (based on buildings or resident groups). The corresponding grass-roots administrative organization can be divided into four levels:

(a) residential district office

(b) xiao qu office

(c) living unit office

(d) building/group

service 64,000 residents

service 8,000-10,000 residents

service 2,000-3,000 residents

service 200-500 residents

With the efforts of these grass-roots administrative organizations, the workers' new village organized various voluntary organizations to meet the society's and residents' needs (Fig. 2.34).

Fig. 2.34.1 The neighborhood committee organizes residents to participate in the choir to enrich daily life

Conclusion

Fig. 2.34.2 The neighborhood committee encourages retired women to set up nursery school so that parents can concentrate on work

From neighbourhood units to residential districts, the boundaries and hierarchies between workers' new villages and grassroots social management are gradually evident, and daily life administration is gradually strengthened. In this process, the hierarchical spatial structure of the new village and the administrative division at the grassroots level are synchronized in time, essentially the state's emphasis on the grassroots collectivism living order.

The whole system fits perfectly with the ideology of planned China: "Only in a closed system can centrally coordinated planning function effectively. The more static, standardized, and unified the population, society, and space are, the clearer the boundaries are, the less accident emerges, and the easier it is to adapt to official observation and management techniques."

Fig. 2.35

(c) (d)

(a) residential district office: service 64,000 residents

(b) xiao qu office: service 8,000-10,000 residents

living unit office: service 2,000-3,000 residents

building/group: service 200-500 residents

layers of daily life administration in Caoyang new village

3. Design Exercise in Kaisariani

Fig. 3.1 Kaisariani, Athens

Kaisariani (Greek: Καισαριανή) is a suburb and a municipality in the eastern part of the Athens agglomeration in Greece. The town was founded in 1922 as a refugee camp for refugees driven from Asia Minor, most of whom came from Smyrna. Formerly part of the municipality of Athens, Kaisariani was created as a municipality in 1933.

Background and Context

The history of Kaisariani

At the end of the Greco-Turkish War of 1919-1922, the government of Greece and Turkey signed the 1923 population exchange from the "Convention Concerning the Exchange of Greek and Turkish Populations" at Lausanne, Switzerland, on 30 January 1923, by governments of Greece and Turkey. It involved at least 1.6 million people (1,221,489 Greek Orthodox from Asia Minor, Eastern Thrace, the Pontic Alps and the Caucasus, and 355,000–400,000 Muslims from Greece), most of whom were forcibly made refugees and de jure denaturalized from their homelands.

Kaisariani was born in this context, where Orthodox refugees from Smyrna established their municipality. As a result, Kaisariani has its uniqueness as a city compared to other general Greek cities.

Collective living: the case of Kaisariani

In the research on workers' new villages in China, it can be noticed how Caoyang new village uses different levels of collective living and spatial logic to address economic and community challenges. In this design exercise, the author will practice a similar strategy in Kaisariani to verify the effectiveness of collective living patterns in different regions and cultures.

Although Kaisariani (Athens) - Greece, and Shanghai - China, are very different geographically and culturally. The analysis of Kaisariani's history and culture can still reveal three advantages in establishing a closer collective living form in this region:

1. the cultural unity of the community in Kaisariani

2. the kinship in the collective memory

3. the CLT (community land trust) system

Fig. 3.2 Greek and Armenian refugee children in Athens

1. The cultural unity of the community in Kaisariani

The inhabitants of Kaisariani mostly share similar traits, as they are orthodox refugees from Smyrna (or the descendants of these refugees). Compared to other regions, Kaisariani's residents are more homogeneous in terms of culture, religion and ethnicity, which actually avoids many of the communal conflicts that these bring.

Fig. 3.3 Refugee camp in Kaisariani, 1923

2. The kinship in the collective memory

During the last 100 years, Kaisariani developed from a refugee camp to a municipality with 26,000 residents, from rural to urban. All of this depends on the efforts and inheritance of the residents of Kaisariani from generation to generation. On the other hand, there are very few immigrants from other areas, so the residents of Kaisariani have a strong collective memory. This collective memory plays an essential role in the collective living of Kaisariani residents.

Fig. 3.4 The urban planning of Kaisariani city, 2000

3. The CLT (community land trust) system

The CLT (community land trust) system is a particular Greek system of land ownership. It usually means that the ownership of a plot of land (apartment) is shared by the investors who built it. Over time, the shares were passed on to more people. In practice, this gives most residents of an apartment building some right of speech in the communal affairs of the building. These characteristics also give the potential for closer collaboration within the apartment.

Fig. 3.5 The CLT system in Greece

The Type as Generic Type

The pick of existing housing as the prototype

Kaisariani is a mature community that has continued to grow for nearly a hundred years. Different periods and policies have resulted in the diversity of residential construction here. After determining low intervention, low-cost housing renovation as the basic strategy, how to select the prototype for renovation in the various housing in Kaisariani become the most crucial prerequisite.

After analysing local housing in Kaisariani, a "generic type" can be found among these houses (Fig. 3.7). The floorplan of these apartments consists of two separate units, and a central staircase. Each unit is entirely self-contained with its bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and other facilities. Each could accommodate a family (about 3-4 people). The apartment can replicate itself with several combinations to form a larger apartment, but the spatial logic is similar (Fig. 3.6).

The design base on this generic type could be used to the greatest extent in the entire community in Kaisariani.

Fig. 3.6 The spatial logic of "generic type"

The

Strategy: Three Levels of Collective Living

In the research of Caoyang new village in chapter 2, it can be found that the collective living of workers in the new village is divided into different levels. In the exercise of Kaisariani, a similar strategy will be adopted to improve collective living.

The strategy will be implemented at three levels based on the selected prototype:

1. Element

2. Living Unit

3. Block

The building elements are on the most miniature scale in the building, which shows the living form behind it. The original elements of the residential building included solid concrete walls, narrow shutters and an immovable structure. Thus, these elements imply the solidification of the living pattern and the limitation of living (family) scale in the house, and the unit cannot provide a more potential living form.

At the level of element, according to the removal of old elements and the plug of new elements, the new relationship between public and private, indoor and outdoor, is built.

Fig. 3.8 The original structure of the housing

Fig. 3.9 The original elements of the housing

1. flexible board

Fig. 3.11 The process of renovation

1. Flexible board:

2. extra light balcony

Using flexible panels instead of the original concrete walls between the bedrooms gives them more space partition possibilities.

2. Extra light balcony

The original solid concrete facade resulted in residents lacking natural light and ventilation. By installing light steel balconies on the exterior walls, residents are enhanced with access to fresh air and sunlight, supporting the possibility of private activities.

3. folded transparent door

4. moveable window shades

3. Folded transparent door:

The connection between the living unit and the outdoor space will be further improved after the installation of light balconies. According to folding transparent doors, the connection will be stronger.

4. Moveable window shades:

Among the original architectural elements, a solid concrete facade and narrow shutters were used to respond to the intense sun in the Athens area. After the renovation of the elements, movable window shades were installed on the light steel balconies to deal with the problem of sun exposure.

Living

In the past, the fixed layout of the housing only worked for families with three to four members. Other residents, such as single youth, elders living alone and larger-scale families, can not fit into this solid frame (Fig. 3.12).

According to the reorganisation of the relationship between private space (living unit) and shared space (functional space), new building elements support the possibility of building a flexible living form and further cooperation between the neighbours in Kaisariani (Fig. 3.13).

Fig. 3.12 The soild frame cannot adapt to the variety of living forms today

Living Unit Living Unit`

Functional Space Functional Space`

Light Balcony

Living Unit

Functional Space

Fig. 3.13 The flexible frame support more possibility

Type - Six single units

single youth/elder association 1-2 people

the share space as entertainment space

Type - Four family units

parents + kid 2-3 people

the share space as children-care space

Type - Two large family units

grandparents + parents + kids 4-6 people

the share space as family space

Type - One large/mix unit

diverisity grounp

various

the share space as hybrid space

Block

The block as a collective form

The new living unit provides a flexible and centralized collective living form at the level of floor and building, which also enhances the cohesiveness of a building's residents as a collective. In the past, residents organized themselves as families. The new living unit frame extends this organization to the scale of floors and buildings. However, on the block scale, buildings still exist in isolation from each other, and the use of outdoor space is fragmented and purposeless.

The design in this level follows a similar logic to integrate all the buildings in a block into one whole. The centralized layout creates a holistic and organized outdoor space for the residents, supporting the potential for larger-scale collective activities.

Fig. 3.14 Correlation is weak between the buildings in the block of Kaisariani

The block as a generic block

In order to ensure the universality of the block design in Kaisariani, an ordinary block was chosen as the design sample. These blocks are usually surrounded by residential buildings with public spaces in the central place. These spaces are often used as parking lots, fragmented landscapes and rest spaces, and the ground floor of the surrounding building is usually used as small shops or housing.

Fig. 3.15 A generic block is picked as the sample

Fig. 3.16 The original site plan of the block

Fig. 3.17 The plan after the design in living unit level

Based on the design of the living unit, the original buildings are regenerated with flexible living forms. Light steel balconies on the periphery of the building not only provide spatial extension and functionality for the living units but also establish a connection between the interior and exterior of the building, which offers the potential to create a centralized public space in the open space.

1

Fig. 3.19 The ground floor plan of the block

A three-level spatial order was established on the ground of the block:

1. The ground floor - grocery store and daily service, semi-open event space

2. The corridor - shading and rest space, seats for public activities

3. The playground - centralized public space, space for a block event

Conclusion

Centralized Form and the Rebuild of Collective

Workers' new village is the main body of urban housing construction from the 1950s to 1990s in China, and also the utopian collectivist living form established in the age of scarcity. The word "workers' new village" is not only the spatial sample in the era of planned economy China but also an important tool to construct the identity of workers (and most of the Chinese) through collective living. In addition, the workers' new village practice also directly led to the birth of the modern Chinese public housing system and the establishment of China's grass-roots social management system. These systems are still profoundly affecting the urban context of China today.

In the case of Caoyang new village, it can be clearly found that different levels of spatial sharing establish the centralized collective life, allowing residents to bond the special relationship with neighbours or co-workers.

The design exercise uses a similar strategy in Kaisariani, Athens. According to the reorganization of three levels, architectural elements, living units and blocks, a flexible and centralized form of living is constructed. This collective living fits Kaisariani's history and urban context and rebuilds the collective in this unique region.

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The End