Harmony of Form and Function: Analyzing the Structural, Aesthetic, and Spatial Layout of Nanjing's Traditional Earth Buildings

Abstract

Vernacular housing does not just reflect a local culture; the aesthetic that it carries is not only analogical but local. The study aimed to look into the traditional Chinese vernacular dwelling (TCVD) architectural features represented by earth buildings (Tulou) in Nanjing and the spatial layout of conventional Chinese vernacular dwellings represented by earth buildings (Tulou) in Nanjing. Among the traditional TCVD, qualitative research tools focused on architectural features and spatial patterns in detailed earth architectural features and the space structure of the Nanjing earth buildings. Then, the extracted local architectural characteristics and spatial layout characteristics were transformed into visual art, partly linking traditional Chinese character art. The article's theoretical framework consists of building typology, spatial sociology, semiotics, and Feng Shui. Then 69 representative mortise-tenon structures, wooden components, and Tulou architectural elements such as roofs and doors, which were representative of the entirety of the image of the earth building, were finally transformed into characters. The color of the earth building comes from the concept of five lines in the Feng Shui theory system: Wood, Fire, Earth, Gold, and Water correspond to Cyan, Red, Yellow, White, and Black, respectively. The other is based on the idea of "geography and five secrets" and combined with the spatial layout of the cluster of Tulou in Tianluokeng, which will be the architectural concepts of architecture and landscape. Creating symbols, creating characters, creating wooden structures occasionally with creation, creating architectural elements, and creating group creation are mined languages of art in paintings.