Architecture and Time: From Ancient Cities to Contemporary Spaces

Highly praised and recommended by Qu Jingdong, Wang Min'an, and Zhou Rong! Throughout history, architecture has always been a silent ruler. In the eyes of the world, architecture stands against time, unchanging. Modern cities are filled with buildings like these, refusing to blend into the urban fabric, clashing with their surroundings and aspiring to become monuments to themselves. The author believes that time and space are inseparable, and that individuals can truly enter the world of bygone constructions only by reflecting their authentic lived experiences onto it.

Including an introduction and afterword, this book contains 21 essays, linked by time as both their titles and their guiding thread. Drawing on years of experience, broad knowledge, and research, the author places their examination and reflection on architecture in the context of time. A series of “lenses” brings together the walls of the Forbidden City and the protruding arches of the Alhambra, the architectural marvel and catastrophe of the Yongning Temple Pagoda in Northern Wei Luoyang, the splendor and decay of the modern metropolis of New York, Emperor Huizong of Song's unseen Genyue, and Le Corbusier's Radiant City, which would “abolish all boundaries.” Whether it is a city of antiquity, a story from modern China, or life in contemporary society, each is merely the starting point for the period of time explored in its respective essay. Whether looking back at the past or gazing ahead, the author hopes that this journey through time will inspire readers to think more deeply about the spaces they inhabit.