Zhang Tang

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WZ: Your hometown Chengdu is considered a new ‘first-tier’ Chinese city like Beijing and Shanghai. How do you see Chengdu—its urban life, architecture and its popularity with millennials—vis-à-vis other places, especially from the perspective of a working architect in this city?

ZT: I first ran a café-cum-exhibition space in an old neighbourhood in 2016. It was during that time that I came to know about issues and organisations regarding local communities. That indirectly led to the Yulin Alley project after my return to Chengdu from Japan where I studied, in 2018.

It is true that Chengdu is an important metropolitan centre and is regarded as a new-first-tier city these days, but being in the southwest of China, it does have a special sense of locality unlike other megacities.

The fact that it is not an industrial or trade powerhouse like Shanghai and Guangzhou gives Chengdu more room to consider the civilian aspect of a city. It is also a place rich with scenic and touristic resources, which all contribute to it having a special branch in the local administration that focuses on community building and regeneration, which to my knowledge is unique in China.

RELATED: Yulin Alley Neighbourhood · Community Public Space Renovation

You could also see it under the larger umbrella of the city government’s effort to promote cultural tourism, which happens concurrently with a rise in café culture—Chengdu is supposedly the number one city in China when it comes to the number of cafés. A café, as you know, is but one venue where one could observe the daily lives of local people. As the concept of unique stores or spaces ‘curated’ by private owners becomes phenomenal, Yulin—an old neighbourhood in the city centre—assumes the role of an experimental ground. Along with a strong media culture and the existence of both governmental and private platforms, the city provides opportunities for many young homecoming architects like myself.

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WZ: Your first project of note is the community centre and plaza at Yulin Alley, an old neighbourhood in the heart of the city. It comes across as having a very youthful presence that contrasts with its surroundings. How did the project come about and how does it fit into the urban context? How does the local community utilise the space?

ZT: The local committee of Yulin posted an invitation for external designers/planners to collaborate in neighbourhood building. After some communication, I decided to submit a competition proposal for a new space they were envisioning. We were lucky that our thoughts aligned with the organisers’, so we began working together to polish the concept.

RELATED: Transformation of a neighbourhood bicycle shed

When we came upon the Yulin Alley project, it was stated in its brief that the space should be friendly to the community and the disabled. I think some would interpret it as a social initiative, providing people from the local or disadvantaged communities with work or business opportunity, but we soon realised that in order to maintain a venue without funding, where it could still be a place where such issues can be discussed, it has to be a sustainable business model. We also wanted to construct a place accessible to everyone, including the elderly and children, without giving it specific labels.

Regarding the contrast in appearance, which is created by this architectural addition, we actually took inspiration from many temporary sheds that you could easily find in the vicinity. The fact that the neighbourhood is a visible, organic accumulation of buildings of different times—for example, old red brick factory buildings—makes our building rather un-special. The people of Chengdu are quite accepting of new things, and a space that facilitates gathering and coffee drinking fits nicely with our local culture of tea, chess and leisure.

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