The design work of Zheng Xin, the professor from School of Architecture in Southeast University (SEU), has won the 14th Future Architectural Award in Cannes, France. This is the first time that a Chinese has won this award.
Sponsored by the famous English periodical Architectural Review which enjoys a high reputation in the architectural field, the Future Architectural Award aims at honoring the outstanding architectural design works worldwide that are unfinished but creative.
Professor Zheng has won this award for his work “Qingguo Alley Historic and Cultural Block”.
As the last relatively intact historic and cultural block built in the Ming Dynasty in Changzhou, this project is located in the central old town of Changzhou.
Through the design planning, Professor Zheng doesn’t adopt the traditional reconstruction method which only copies the old buildings, but designs new buildings surrounding the old ones and completely preserves the old historic sites like the residential buildings of famous literary figures and merchants, stage theatres, shops, etc.
According to Professor Zheng, this work has won the award partly because the Western concerns about China’s development and the transformation of historic and cultural blocks.
On the other hand, it can be attributed to the idea of “the coordination and co-development of the new architectures and the old ones” that was recognized by the judges.
