台 灣 遊 學
Taiwan Travel Study 2015
Vivian Chiang Bachelor of Environmental Design in Architecture College of Design - North Carolina State University Arc 589 - Travel Study II
CONTENTS 1 Project Overview 2 History 3 Case Study 1: Lin An Tai Ancestral House 4 Case Study 2: Dihua Street Store Front 5 Case Study 3: Friend’s House 6 Case Study 4: Grandma’s House 7 Case Study 5: Uncle’s House 8 Comparison 9 Conclusion
PROJECT OVERVIEW During a three-month trip abroad in Taiwan, I looked at residential buildings dating from the late 1700s to early 2000. The goal of this travel study was to understand the reasoning for the typical Taiwanese style housing and how it has developed overtime. My trip to Taiwan was focused in the capital, Taipei. As the capital, Taipei develops much faster than the other provinces. This created the perfect opportunity for me to observe historical and modern precedence.
History Taiwan is a country that has been established for less than 100 years. For most of its history, it had been under the rule of China and other European countries, preminently the Dutch. in 1895 China cedes Taiwan to Japan after losing the first Sino-Japanese War where Taiwan remained under Japanese control until 1942. In 1942, Taiwan was returned to China, but the Kuomingtang government evacuated to Taiwan with about two million refugees when the Communist government won in the Chinese Civil War. These refugees later became permanent residents of Taiwan and along with the aboriginals, helped establish the Taiwan we know of today.
While under the control of various countries, Taiwan’s local architecture was greatly influenced. Even now, the city is a mix of European, Japanese, and Chinese styles. There are pockets of areas where you can see which country was in control at the time of development. Recent forms of modern architecture show a heavy Western influence, especially when it comes to the technology used.
中山高速公路
松江大橋
CASE STUDY 1 Lin An Tai Ancestral House Zhongshan District, Taipei City, Taiwan 104
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PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
Built in the 1780s-1820s
Lin An-Tai Historical House & Museum is located in Binjiang Park. The house is a traditional Chinese courtyard house with elegant decorations and is one of the few traditional houses preserved in northern Taiwan. The two-century old Lin An Tai Historical Home is a southern Fujianese-style courtyard house with four walls surrounding an interior courtyard. This type of layout is known as a 四合院 (Si He Yuan). The house has about 24 bedrooms to accomodate the entire Lin family and extended family. Although most Taiwanese homes are no where near this large, this house carries a lot of historical precedence and became a good starting point to begin my comparisons. A typical Taiwanese home will accomodate the parents, children and the paternal grandparents. Bedrooms were often located along the back wall or surrounding the main courtyard. Service quarters and bedroom for the younger children were often along the outerwalls.
歸綏街
民生西路
CASE STUDY 2 No. 156, Section 1, Dihua St, Datong District Taipei City, Taiwan 103
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Kitchen
Bedroom Store
1st Floor
2nd Floor
Built in the 1850s Dihua Street is a street located in the Da Dao Cheng area of Da Tong district in Taipei. The main street known as ‘Centre Street’ was constructed during the 1850s, However, the surrounding area dates back to when Taiwan was under Dutch control from 16241661. Dihua street has always been an important center for commerce in Taiwanese products such as Chinese medicinal herbs, fabrics, and tea. The city has made efforts to preserve and conserve the architecture in this area. PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
The commercial aspect of the area, made for an interesting case study. Many of the residences here have a shop front at the street and have an upper floor or two for families to reside. The windows are made up of wooden panels that are fitted with a tongue-in-groove method and can easily be removed or put up when the shops open or close. I was not able to get a more detailed plan of the living areas since that area was private.
成泰路三段
CASE STUDY 3 No. 66, Section 1, Lingyun Rd, Wugu District, New Taipei City, Taiwan 248
This house belongs to one of my friends in Taiwan. Their family inherited a large plot of land, along with this house, from their ancestors. The land has always been used as farm land to grow a variety of vegetables to sell at the market. The house is currently not occupied other than for her father to take naps during a long day of working in the fields. The majority of the left side of the building is unaccessible from the building collapsing in some areas. PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
Built in 1941-1951
This case study is another example of a FuJianese-style, but instead of a four wall courtyard that is seen in case study 1, this one is comprised of three walls, also known as 三合院 (San He Yuan). Four walls is more commonly seen in Northern Chinese architecture. Three walled courtyards are typically from Southern Chinese Influence. The wall is not considered in the actual building structure which is why this case study is not a four wall courtyard. Most often, the bedrooms are located in the back of the building on either side on the main entry room. As a lot of the rooms were rundown, I was unable to have a clear understanding of what each room was used for.
福和橋
永裡路
永元路
CASE STUDY 4 132 Yongyuan Rd, 4th Floor Yonghe District, New Taipei City, Taiwan
Bedroom
Living room
Bedroom / Storage
Full Bathroom
Half Bathroom
Bedroom
Built in 1970 This house belongs to my grandma on my dad’s side. My dad grew up in this three bedroom house with his parents and 3 other siblings. It also has one kitchen and one full and one half bathroom. Since all of the children have moved out, my grandma currently resides here by herself. One of the bedrooms now serves as a storage. The complex has four floors and my grandma lives on the third. This case study shows an earlier version of the typical apartments seen in Taiwan. Similar to case study 2, there are store fronts on the first floor and then living areas above. However, the living areas do not necessarily house the store tenants. Natural light and ventilation is coming in mostly from the living room and bedroom. On the other side, where the entry is, some ventilation will come in from the hallways as the window there are not operable. Most of the time, families will spend time in the living room/dining room. Sometimes the reasoning for this is to cut costs in the electricity bill. There is not a system that runs through the entire house but rather individual rooms. So instead of turning on each unit in each room, families will congregate in the living room. Even when this isn’t the case, Taiwanese families typically spend more time in a public area rather than in their own rooms.
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PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PROD
Kitchen
忠孝街
CASE STUDY 5 No. 8-7, Lane 2, Zhongxiao St, Zhonghe District New Taipei City, Taiwan 235
Bedroom
Bedroom Bedroom Living room Office
Kitchen
Built in 2008-2009 This last house belongs to my Uncle and his family. There are three bedrooms and two full bathrooms, along with a kitchen, office, and living room. Normally only my uncle, aunt, and my mom’s mom live here. I chose this house as one of my case studies to show what residential architecture currently looks like in Taipei. The rooms are often more spacious and the use of materials creates a very luxurious appearance. In this particular complex, whether it was intentional or not, created a three walled courtyard. Since my uncle’s house is not in the heart of the city, there is no need to utilize the first floor as a store front. However, as you head only a few feet towards the main streets, you will again see the typical store fronts with residential spaces above. This apartment complex is a little out of context with the surrounding community. This is happening more and more often as new apartment buildings are going up and older buildings are not being renovated to match the new and modern architecture that is quickly taking over the city.
PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
Bathroom Bathroom
Comparison
Case Study 1
Case Study 2
Case Study 3
In earlier residential housing, because of the stong influence of Chinese architecture, many of the houses have a very strong axial symmetry. I have set up the plans of each building so that it is easier to make comparisons between each of them. I have also diagrammed the private and public areas. Each of the plans have a generally centralized public area with the private areas surrounding it. Public areas are not usually split up as Taiwanese families spend a lot of their time together in those spaces.
Case Study 4
Case Study 5
Conclusion Until after the 1950s, Taiwanese residences were fairly similar in their layouts. Strong axial symmetry was a distinguishing trait in those earlier homes. The cause for the change in the architectural language may have had to do with rapid industrial development occuring around the country. Buildings began to grow vertically and needed to accomodate more and more people in smaller spaces. During the last ten or twenty years, it seems as if Taiwan is looking to Western standards of living as a guide for how they should be building their residences. Spaces are getting a little larger and more luxurious. However, what remains the same is the use of a central public space for the family to gather. This is mostly due to an Asian culture of being family oriented. The paternal grandparents usually live with the eldest son and their family. I do believe that over the next few years, this could change. Taiwan is influenced by so many other countries and in more recent years, mostly from Western influence. Housing plans could become more oriented on individual spaces rather than the living or dining rooms. If I had the chance, I would like to look and see if this is the case in another ten years. I would also like to find more Japanese-influenced precedence. There is an efficiency to the housing plans in Taiwan that allows for comfort without having to use large spaces. I would like to see that Taiwan keeps working towards these small, efficient residences, rather than the more sizeable American homes.
Vivian Chiang NCSU COD 2015