Wednesday 23 October 2013

Shanghai de Lux: Projecting Modernity


Exclusively for Saturated Space, Evan Chakroff writes about Shanghai, its lights, its past and its projected future present.

"In Shanghai, light and colour give designers, planners, and policy makers the freedom to present an idealized image of their buildings, their city. Dynamic, animated lights dance through the haze, but hidden by darkness, massive fissures split the sidewalks, the water is undrinkable, and the air is toxic. While the idealized image the city seeks to project is one of uncontested modernity, conditions on the ground (in the harsh light of day) deny this. Architectural lighting is thus instrumental – even essential - in the projection of modernity, and represents a key aspect of Chinese society’s reclamation of agency following a long period of oppression and turmoil."

Please either use the embedded reader below or click HERE to read the text.