Description
Numerous still-work traditional courtyard housings are still active within the Old Town of Suzhou, which used to accommodate one extended family. However, nowadays, several families normally share one house and adapt the house and courtyard for their use. This research primarily investigates the life and spatial transformation of the traditional courtyard housing in the changing societal and historical background: How and why have these changes happened in people’s lives and these houses? The purpose of this research is to rethink the relationship between changes of the occupants’ life and the spatial transformation in the Suzhou courtyard housing. By studying changes of the occupant group and their lifestyle as well as comparing the traditional and current characteristics, such as layout and facilities, in two Suzhou courtyard housings, Wangzhai in Donghuaqiao Lane and No.50 in Shizijie, reasons of spatial transformation resulting from lifestyle changes can be summarized. First, the increasing residents forced people to expand into the courtyard which strengthens the sense of enclosure of the courtyard. Second, the change of residents made rooms re-divided because of changed function, and the circulation also be transformed. Third, the contradiction between modern living facilities and the traditional structure and materials was transformed into the functional complexity of courtyards and passage.| Period | Jul 2021 |
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