[Yan Liu]

I found this event on Facebook. Below is a brief introduction. More information can be found at: https://fb.me/e/1dp77fAqo

For more than 500 years, the Chinese Empire was ruled from behind the deep crimson walls of Beijing’s Forbidden City, which was the home of the Emperor and his imperial court. The design of this city-within-a-city reflects China’s philosophical and religious traditions, as well as deep beliefs about man and nature. This year marks the 600th anniversary of its completion in 1420 during the Ming Dynasty. Join us on October 28 for a discussion of the meaning behind its architecture, and its impact on Chinese architecture today.

This event is part of Archtober, the AIA Center for Architecture’s tenth-annual festival of architecture activities, programs and exhibitions taking place during the month of October.

[Yan Liu]

I was intrigued by the precision and the use of "black" and "whit"e in the "Nolli plan of Rome". As Prof. Bharne introduced in the video, white was used to indicate public places while black was used to indicate private places. This makes me wonder how the concept of "privacy" is perceived and conveyed in the west and in the east. In addition to color, what else can be used to indicate "privacy"? In Chinese traditional dwellings, private places are far from the entrance. But Prof. Bharne mentioned in traditional Japanese house, the first room people entered was not the livingroom and the livingroom is the furthest room from the entrance. This is really interesting. I wonder how "privacy" was conveyed/indicated in Japan? Are there any changes from the past to the present? The "indoor-outdoor transparency" of Japanese houses is also very interesting. Is it just for the purpose of aesthetics? 

[Yan Liu]

It was so nice meeting everyone this evening. I enjoyed the discussion, especially our discussion about "stereotypes about Asia/East Asia" and "sustainability". To be honest, I haven't seriously thought about "What is Asia/East Asia" even though I was originally from China. I know that Asian/East Asian countries have much in common whereas each country is unique in my ways. Maybe because I value the differences too much, I used to identifying myself more as a Chinese than an East Asian. But the question of “What is Asia/East Asia” is really intriguing. I hope to find an answer or multiple answers to this question in this seminar. I also enjoyed the discussion about the stereotypes about East Asian countries. Many thanks to those people who shared their ideas/experience. Their sharing provided me with different perspectives of understanding East Asia. I think one of the most important take-aways for me is that stereotypes are not always negative. It can serve as a great stimulus for us and for our students to explore other cultures or even other subjects. Last but not least, I really appreciate that Prof. Bharne pointed out that sustainability was a complex concept. When I talked about the sustainability, I only thought of the environmental aspect of it, but I didn’t think of the social and economic aspects of it. I look forward to knowing more about “sustainability” and how it is defined by or conveyed through architecture and urbanism in this seminar course.

[Yan Liu]

Hi, everyone! My name is Yan Liu and I teach Chinese language and culture in the Department of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at Duke University. My academic background is in second language acquisition. I have been teaching Chinese in the U.S. since 2009. In addition to Chinese language courses, I have been designing and teaching interdisciplinary content courses in Chinese, like Global Health and Environmental Studies. I'm very interested in the topic of this seminar (architecture and urbanism) and would like to know how to integrate it into my teaching. I look forward to the seminar and meeting you all soon!

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