In search of new meanings for the Chinese garden in early reform-era China, 1978-2000 : I. M. Pei's Fragrant Hill Hotel and Zhu Guangya's Shen Garden

Abstract

This research explores interpretations and transformations of Chinese garden philosophy, aesthetics, and theory through an in-depth analysis of architectural and landscape design practices situated within dual international and domestic historical contexts. Combining oral history interviews, field studies, and design archive research, it examines the design processes of two key projects by highly regarded architects, I. M. Pei and Zhu Guangya during the early stages of China’s Reform and Opening-Up era since 1978: the Fragrant Hill Hotel and its garden in Beijing, and the Shen Garden project in Shaoxing. Through an analysis of three representative themes closely tied to gardens—space, city, and narrativity—the study explores the transformation of traditional Chinese garden philosophy in practice and its societal significance during this era of intellectual, cultural, and institutional collisions.

The study first analyzes two parallel intellectual trajectories shaped by international politics and World War II prior to China’s Reform and Opening-Up era, and their relationships with gardens: first, the reflections of international modernist architects such as Walter Gropius on Eastern gardens and modernity, along with the intersections of said reflections with I. M. Pei’s personal journey and practices regarding courtyards and gardens; second, within Zhu Guangya’s local Chinese context, the study briefly reviews the architects’ exploration of Chinese gardens, centered on surveying, spatial interpretation, and cultural analysis, as well as their interactions with and influences on shifts in Chinese social ideologies and intellectual trends.

The differences in these trajectories and contexts provide an in-depth explanation of the reasons behind the distinct yet interconnected positions adopted by Pei and Zhu in their practices during the Reform and Opening-Up era. The significance of further discussion on Pei and Zhu’s cases through the three aspects of space, city, and narrativity lies in its ability to break away from a single, state-centric, continuous grand narrative. Instead, the study uncovers and interprets shifts in thought through the details of decision-making and conflicts within specific design cases, By interviews with Tan Xin, a Chinese landscape architect who collaborated with Pei, as well as Zhu, the chief designer of Shen Garden, this study connects their personal experiences and careers with the wider epoch, offering alternative insight into interpreting and understanding the transformative era of their time.

The dramatic intersection of Pei and Zhu in their courtyard practices for the Suzhou Museum serves as a pivotal point in the thesis, informing the collisions, integrations, and transformations that occurred as China reconnected with the world.

Through textual and contextual analyses of the design cases of these two architects, this thesis argues that the transformation of garden philosophy during the Reform and Opening-Up era was an interactive process shaped by the evolving values of the time. While Pei and Zhu adopted different strategies, their practices consistently engaged with tradition as a starting point, actively responded to the zeitgeist and sought to leverage gardens as a driving force for China’s societal progress.