Sep 25 2013
Architecture students from the University of Sheffield have been invited to China to help in the development one of the country’s most historic towns.
The final year master students have travelled to the Northern Chinese town of Guangfu - the birthplace of Tai Chi – to offer their skills and expertise in what is an ambitious planned development of the famous water town.
There are plans to transform Guangfu into a tourist destination with a range of guest homes and holiday rentals, restaurants, bars, cafes and museums.
The exciting opportunity has been made possible thanks to the University’s close links with London- based architects Hawkins\Brown, which has an office in China, and the School of Architecture’s reputation for world class research and teaching.
The students headed out on Saturday (21 September 2013) and will spend the week in Guangfu gathering research which will form the basis of a Live Project when they return.
Satwinder Samra, from the University’s School of Architecture, said: “Along with practices like Hawkins\Brown we are developing new relationships between practice, academia and industry.
“The research trip to China is an excellent opportunity for students to work on Live Projects with real clients, providing them with invaluable experience for their future careers. Students will study the town exploring the physical, material and economic factors. They will meet local stakeholders and listen to local people. They will put theory into practice trying to understand what is really required.”
On their return to the UK the students will develop their research on how the town’s development could be carried in the future.
Guangfu was established 2,600 years ago and the ancient walls that surround the town are still intact with an artificial river surrounding them.
The town’s layout and architecture dates back to the Ming Dynasty.
The trip demonstrates the University of Sheffield’s excellent links with China. The University has been welcoming Chinese students for more than 100 years with the number of learners choosing to study at the University rising every year. Currently Chinese students make up ten per cent of the University’s student body.
The University’s School of Architecture has long-standing connection with Hawkins\Brown. Partner Roger Hawkins is an alumni and many former students have gone onto work for the practice.
Another former alumni of the University’s School of Architecture is William Matthews who graduated in 1994. He has spent over 12 years working on Europe’s Tallest Building – The Shard. William was the project architect, supervising the final elements.
Source: http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/