Asian Architecture: Ningbo Historic Museum

ASIAN ARCHITECTUREARC60403/ARC2234

PROJECT: CASE STUDY PAPER

Wapan Technique used in Ningbo Historic Museum to Revive Traditional Chinese Construction Techniques

Bachelor of Science (Hons) in ArchitectureSchool of Architecture, Building & Design

Taylor’s University

Tutor : Mr. Nicholas Ng

Group: Canisius Bong Wei Pheng 0318914Joyce Wee Yi Qin 0319602Kan Sook San 0319326Ong Eu Xuan 0319050Ricco Soh Zheng Wei 0319890Tan Wing Hoe 0319333

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Table of Contents

Abstract

1.0 Overview 1.1 Building Overview: Ningbo Historic Museum, Zhejiang, China 1.2 Building Construction Method: Wapan Tiling Technique

2.0 Origin of Wapan Technique 2.1 Historical Factors 2.2 Contextual Factors

3.0 Materiality 3.1 Use of Materials 3.2 Evolution of Materials (Culture and History) 3.3 Memories

4.0 Construction Technique 4.1 Original 4.2 Modified

5.0 Significance of WaPan Technique in the Urban Context 5.1 Slow Architecture 5.2 Sustainability

6.0 Conclusion7.0 References

ARC 2213/2234 Asian Architecture

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Abstract

This paper dwells on the use of a traditional construction technique that was once used successively in indigent villages and has been discontinued in modern day China due to the development of the country, causing traditional and cultural techniques to be eliminated and forgotten. (issue)

With China being such a great influence to many countries, its traditional culture should be revived and preserved. The traditional techniques, like the Wapan tiling technique should be further explored with modern technology and present day methods. (objectives)

Literature reviews and comparative studies on chinese traditional construction techniques are conducted, and further analyzed to supply for our research. (methodology)

The use of Wapan tiling technique has been forgone for many years since the modernization in China, until Chinese architect Wang Shu decided to take on the technique in his facade design for the Ningbo Historic Museum. (case study)

Furthermore, to relate our case study building to the topic, we have also deliberated on other case studies of similar context, culture and construction techniques. Similar techniques explored includes slow architecture. Other architectural examples were referred to, countries like Canada and Ireland displayed development on the architecture approach, many architecture in these countries were cultivated gradually, combined with ecological and sustainable approach. (case study) (findings)

This paper would cover subtopics related to the Wapan tiling technique, which may include materials and its origins, factors that led to building of Wapan walls, as well as the significance of these walls to urban Ningbo.

In a nutshell, this paper will focus on the Wa Pan technique used in the Ningbo Historic Museum. Wang Shu implied that due to the increasing modernization in the area, the Wa Pan technique is slowly being forgotten. In this paper, an analysis on the information of this technique will capture how it shaped the Ningbo culture, and how the technique was abandoned and gradually discontinued in Ningbo. (discussions and conclusions)


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1.0 Building Overview

1.1 Building Overview The Ningbo Historic Museum, Zhejiang, China

The Ningbo Historic Museum is located in the Yinzhou District of Zhejiang, a district of administrative and commercial land use. The surrounding site is occupied with buildings that are tall, boxy and symmetrical in typical style of municipal architecture in China.

The museum is designed by Pritzker Architecture Prize winning Chinese architect Wang Shu, and was opened in 2008. Inspired by the influence of the East China Sea in Ningbo history, the museum design is shaped from the concepts of mountains, water and oceans. Its form is also morphed out of shapes of boats and lands, making the building an icon to Ningbo culture and history.

It is an asymmetrical construction, measured at 144m long, 65m wide and 24m high. The museum’s main facade is composed of various traditional historical customs of Ningbo, as Wang Shu has sought to continue and recover the tradition of old Chinese village construction techniques.


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1.2 Building Construction Method Wapan Tiling Technique

Traditional Chinese construction methods are used on the Ningbo Historic Museum. The Wapan tiling technique, with the aid of modern technology, gives the building a statement look. The stacking tiles that make up the outer skin of the building reflects the memory Ningbo.

Wang Shu constructed these walls mainly by using old, used raw materials collected from the demolition of traditional Ningbo villages. He perfected a mixed system with these materials and steel, concrete beams to construct a modern day Wapan wall.

Over twenty different types of brick, stones and tiles were collected from the demolition of the fifteen villages destroyed in the Ningbo region, and were reused to construct the museum using the Wapan tiling technique, that was first used in the region to quickly rebuild the villages after natural disasters that frequent the area.

The recycled tiles, stones and bricks were arranged by the craftsmen without being planned by the architect.


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2.0 Origin of Wapan Technique

2.1 Historical Factors

During the late of Qing Dynasty, the glory of China’s Imperial Era no longer exist as the intruders took advantages of unstable political condition of China where the war occurred.

Ci Cheng, a small ancient town of Zhejiang with hundreds acres was destroyed by a fire during the war. The wealthy families with official statuses and businessmen who escaped from the war were in straitened circumstances; therefore they did not have the ability to rebuild their fame and wealth from the past.

As time goes by, Ci Cheng was replaced by small houses and rooms, In the midst of hardship, the craftsmen’ wisdom and abilities had revived the damaged town by using the remaining rubble and debris caused by the war.

Thus, they initiated the Wapan tiling technique in China. After the liberation, the town had no property to be cultivated because of the abandoned county town and undeveloped traffic way. As a result of the enclosed town, up until the 1970s when the contemporary building did not exist, the traditional ancient buildings were survived from the demolition.


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1.2 Contextual Factors

The northeast of Zhejiang Province is one of the most typhoon prone areas in China. The traditional villages that were located by the sea were easily destroyed by the strong wind of nature.

Within a short period of time, the villages were able to recycle the available debris from the aftermath of the natural disaster to repair their destroyed homes. The mixed use of recycled bricks and tiles in the construction had initiated a technique called Wapan.


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3.0 Materials

3.1 Use of Materials

Wapan applies the stacking method in its construction. It may be composed of various types of material, ranging from recycled brick to rocks. As for Ningbo Historic Museum, Wang Shu mainly took on bricks and clay tiles that were found among the debris of Ningbo villages.

After a brief appraisal, Wang Shu encountered a standard sized grey brick that was approximately 20cm wide at the site. He stated that the brick was produced 400 years ago during the Ming Dynasty.

Following that, he discovered various types of stone, some of which are from the Qing Dynasty and Tang Dynasty. The oldest brick is from the Tang Dynasty approximately 1500 years ago. Millions of tiles were collected, they were commonly used as decorations in economic constructions like Wapan tiling technique in the past.

3.2 (Evolution of Materials)Culture & History

The Wapan tiling technique strives to bring both nature and heritage into a building through its use of materials. Clay tiles in particular are tied to the earth, and tend to evoke designs of ancient Chinese structures. The use of Wapan wall was initially developed to cope with natural disasters in the region using used materials like brick and tiles.

The Wapan masonry facade of the Ningbo Historic Museum was mainly constructed with reclaimed materials, collected from local village demolitions. These materials include roof tiles, different brick pebbles, bamboo cane molded with concrete, and more than thirty types of brick and tiles that would eventually shape the unique pattern of the museum. It reflects the sustainable advanced culture tendency and the theme of ecology, as well as culture amalgation.


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Wangshu devised a new creation of Wapan technique for the Ningbo Historic Museum, calling it “bamboo cane molded concrete’. Bamboo was used due to it being a characteristic local plant in the Ningbo region. The nature of bamboos’ random cracking can be clearly seen through its texture on the concrete.

To ensure that the materials were aligned perfectly straight as the exact execution of the design was extremely tough. However the undesirable feature managed to show the beauty of handmade nature, which embodies the traditional construction system with the materials’ natural color and texture.

The Wapan wall was mainly constructed using tiles. However the entire Wapan wall of Ningbo Historic Museum was constructed using old materials that reflect the culture tendency of the village.

3.2 Memories of Material

In the past, Wapan was once considered as a lowly material and technique of the poor, but in present day this technique has been reinforced in a manner that permits it to function on a scale demanded by contemporary Chinese standards.

However, the application of the technique in Ningbo Historic Museum is distinctive. Its facade is composed of grey conglomerate, along with terracotta roof tiles and grey stacked pebbles that were intentionally adapted by the local artisans of Ningbo. It creates shows traces of Ningbo’s historical past, and reveals a collage effect that shows invitation to allow visitors to come upon the place to explore its past.

In an interview, Wang Shu revealed that the materials used for the walls are not merely debris of the village demolitions, but also history, time and experience. Over the decade, people who touched the bricks were experiencing a nostalgic trip through the usage of materials.


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4.0 Construction Technique

Throughout the years, the function of Wapan tiling has evolved multiple times. In order to suit the different functions, the construction technique is modified for additional strength and stability.

4.1 Original

The emergence of Wapan tiling is a demonstration of skills owned by the artisans to create strong yet aesthetic walls. It is a symbol of social status as it requires patience and a special skillset, and it involves a large amount of time to produce.

The construction of the outer wall starts from a strip of stones (放墙角) at the base of the wall to be built. The dirt on the base is removed and replaced with stones arranged neatly and flat below a layer of crushed tiles that serves as fillers. The wall is then built by layering broken tiles and bricks that are reinforced by a thin layer of lime. The gaps between the tiles allow better ventilation. The inner wall is further reinforced with the application of a full layer of husk or gluten mixed with mud. Upon drying, another layer of hempcrete and lime is applied to give the wall a white wash.

Per an artisan that had been in the field since his younger days, there are a lot of tricks in making a great Wapan wall. “When I just started to pick up this skill, we were told that Wapan is an art of inner peace and should be experienced. But we could not comprehend the skills taught by our seniors. Thus, everything was a as we made uneven walls with uneven layering.

4.2 Modified

In places that are prone to typhoons, such as Ningbo, the Wapan tiling is implemented in villages as an instant restoration method after the destruction. Wapan tiling technique is used in small areas of the walls and roofs that are broken during the typhoon using the broken tiles that were blown away. Due to the speed of reconstruction, the tiling is less reinforced and are prone to be broken again.

In the context of the Ningbo museum, the function of the Wapan wall is brought back to its original function which is as a façade with hints of restoring the society that is destroyed due to urbanization.

The construction of the Wapan wall is a fusion of ancient techniques and modern building systems. In the Ningbo museum, the Wapan wall is a thin facade layer of approximately 240mm. Functionally, it is designed as a form of wall cladding rather than a structural wall due to its poor compressive strength. Its reduced thickness accommodates building systems such as insulation layer, air conditioning and piping systems.

Another major factor that caused the modification of the Wapan masonry in the Ningbo Historic Museum was the height vs the compressive strength of the Wapan wall.

The facade of the Ningbo Historic Museum reaches a height of 24 metres, exceeding the height of Wapan walls constructed in traditional dwellings. Due to the nature of the materials


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and the building technique, the great increase in height highlights the poor compressive strength and stability of the Wapan masonry in the context of the Ningbo Historic Museum.

To solve the issue, the total height of Ningbo History Museum is divided into independent wall blocks of 3 metres to distribute the huge load. Many wall testings were carried out on site with final prototypes producing a facade system from Wapan masonry and mortar, combined with a concrete linear panel.

The Final Wapan masonry consist of four components that are the Wapan wall masonry, concrete linear panel, mortar and reinforced concrete structure. Due to low compressive strength of the masonry, it requires the periodic support of invisible concrete ledgers integrated horizontally into panel every 3 metres. The entire masonry facade system is then tied back to the concrete linear panel, joined tightly together using tie bars to form one whole unit. This help to improve the structural safety of the wall. The 15 centimetres reinforced concrete linear panel is the main load carrying structure.


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5.0 Significance of the Wapan Technique in an Urban Context

5.1 Slow Architecture

Slow architecture refers to architecture that is created and grew gradually instead of being built for short term goals, and often shows ecological and environmentally sustainable qualities.

Due to China’s frequent effort to upgrade towns and cities in metropolitan Ningbo to improve living standards of the residents in a short amount of time, the use of Slow architecture is extremely scarce in modern China.

Wang Shu is known to be described as “China’s champion of Slow architecture”. Many of his designs tend to recall China’s older cities, densely packed and holds qualities of traditional China’s narrow streets and courtyards. In an interview, Wang Shu expressed his worries on the cities today, implying that they are growing too quickly and have become too large.

From afar, the Ningbo Historic Museum resembles an ancient Chinese fortress, walled up with tilting thick walls that look weathered by centuries. But up close, the coarse, uneven facade surface reveals to be assembled of salvaged, worn natural recycled materials. Grey tiles and rocks and bright orange terracotta alternate the walls. On the inside of the building lined angled walls and narrow corridors that open to wide, grand atriums, resembling qualities of China’s Hutong.

An important aspect of slow architecture include reusing existing structures and objects, as opposed to producing new ones.

Slow architects like Wang Shu, tend to prefer filling in existing urban spaces with traditional, lesser developed methods and materials. He explored creative uses of old objects in the Ningbo Historic Museum, by reusing recycled building parts, constructing the structure of the building using a traditional method, the Wapan tiling technique that was greatly abandoned in the Ningbo region.

Wang Shu implied that he was interested in the revival of Chinese traditions, but in contemporary form, as well as the reuse and recycling of old building materials. He acknowledged that construction would be infinitely improved as the result of working by hand, traditionally.


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5.2 Sustainability

The traditional Wapan tiling technique is known to be much more sustainable than the modern construction methods being used today in modern day China. Despite its needs of labors and time, the Wapan wall is proven to have reduced the material cost by a lot. Most of the material, salvaged from village demolitions, are cost free, and the Wapan tiling technique is also highly energy saving, as they operate using manual labors.


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Conclusion

Over the years, the upgrade that had been over years in China has significantly modernized and improved the lifestyle of the people in the country. Various projects initiated to tear down older buildings in Ningbo, to make way for modern skyscrapers and large building developments.

Traditional Chinese construction methods have been long abandoned in the past recent decades, up until award winning architect Wang Shu decided to take upon the chance to design and construct the iconic Ningbo Historic Museum using the traditional Wapan tiling technique. Wang Shu commemorates the history of old Ningbo, whether in its designs, showcases and materials used, but most importantly in its method of construction.

The Wapan tiling technique is the utmost representation of Ningbo, reflecting the history that made up the city. It successfully captured the memories that was once held dearly in the villages of Ningbo.

In a nutshell, this paper collates the information that made up the traditional Wapan tiling technique, and what caused the use of this construction technique to dwindle in such drastic amount. It guides through the history and fallout of Wapan, and its revival and regeneration upon the design of the Ningbo Historic Museum. It shows Wang Shu’s Wang Shu’s foremost intention to revive the spirits and culture that was diminished when the Chinese government sought to demolish the villages of Ningbo.

Through this paper, we are able to understand the significance of the traditional tiling technique, and how it impacts the urban Ningbo better. We are able to trace back the origins of this technique, analyze them and propose ways that would proliferate the use of traditional, abandoned construction techniques.


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References

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Ningbo Historic Museum / Wang Shu, Amateur Architecture Studio. (2009). Retrieved October 10, 2016, from http://www.archdaily.com/14623/ningbo-historic-museum-wang-shu-architect

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翔, 郑. (2013, February 5). 寻找瓦爿墙. Retrieved October 22, 2016, from http://zh.cnnb.com.cn/zhnews4073/mskd/mskd_news/201302/20130205064908.asp

争艳, 徐. (2015, December 5). 瓦爿墙砌筑工艺. Retrieved November 5, 2016 from http://www.zhxww.net/zhnews405/zhgjz/qiangti/20051205143903.htm

Turnitin Plagirism Check


http://forgemind.net/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=15424

https://www.dezeen.com/2016/08/18/video-interview-wang-shu-amateur-architecture-studio-ningbo-history-museum-movie/

https://www.dezeen.com/2016/08/18/video-interview-wang-shu-amateur-architecture-studio-ningbo-history-museum-movie/

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Asian Architecture: Ningbo Historic Museum