VIRTUAL Barcelona
Abstract
Some rapidly urbanising regions of China which are abundant in historical resources, are making a transition from constructing basic archaeological site preservation facilities or site museums to developing archaeological site parks as a means of better balancing heritage preservation and interpretation with the city’s continuous development. This study employs a critical perspective to these changes, identifying and analysing the inherent conflicts within archaeological site parks through literature review, field research, case studies, and interviews. This study primarily uncovers three main aspects of inevitable, inherent conflicts in archaeological site parks, including the inherent conflicts between urban economic development and park heritage conservation; the clashes between park planning, design, and park heritage interpretation; and the differences between the aspirations of the diverse stakeholders. This study does not completely reject the construction significance of such parks but instead offers new perspectives to help unearth the controversial relationships inherent in these parks and suggests potential countermeasures, providing new ideas for policymakers and urban planning in regions with similar contexts.
Chen Zhang is a PhD candidate in the School of Architecture at the University of Sheffield. His research interests include museum studies, heritage conservation, and a few architectural theory and history areas. Currently, he works mainly on Chinese site museums.
Russell Light studied architecture at Portsmouth Polytechnic from 1978 to 1984 and co-founded ‘Ferenczi Design’ after graduation. The firm gained recognition through several competitions and an exhibition at the Venice Biennale. Since 1987, he has been a design tutor at the School of Architecture (SSoA), balancing teaching with running his practice. Now, he is a Senior University Teacher and Alumni Engagement Coordinator. His research interests include architectural theory, the reuse of existing buildings, architectural drawing, and perspective.