IN-PERSON Barcelona Livable Cities. Section A

Abstract

The “Hakkei” is a viewing style that evaluates eight outstanding landscapes in a region that originated in the Xiaoxiang region of ancient China and has influenced the sense of value of the East Asian landscape. Did this culture of defining and appreciating multiple landscapes in a region spread “preservable” landscapes? The objective of this research was to clarify what kind of landscape realms were honoured by the incorporation of the culture of Hakkei into municipal planning and whether these realms have changed physically and socially in the modern era of urbanization. Therefore, this paper targeted Japan, where Hakkei have been designated by local governments as a matter of policy throughout the country, to clarify the changes in the spatial elements favoured in recent years. We first conducted an online search and interviewed local governments to investigate the transition between the existing policy regarding traditional Hakkei and the newly re-selected one. 35 municipalities with re-selected Hakkei were surveyed to sort out the selection process. The spatial elements included in the Hakkei in these cities were extracted and categorized. As a result, the research clarified that such policies achieved to transmit the viewing culture rather than physically preserve comprehensive aesthetic elements. They have led to a multifaceted understanding of the local landscape by citizens and confirmed that the preferable realm has been replaced with urban and familiar ones on a daily basis from natural ones which some of which are selected traditionally following the Chinese manner.