Historic kilns fire up memories

Pengjia alley, for example, is one of the projects on the renovation list. The community has a large area of porcelain-making ruins. The Tsinghua Tongheng Urban Planning and Design Institute restored the entire original structure with expertise and considerable love and attention to detail, and carefully supplemented with new buildings. Its approach makes the history of porcelain making not only visible to residents living and working there, but also enables it to be experienced by tourists.

"Historical ruins have been transformed into a lively place for living, shopping and culture, while ensuring that the past can still be felt everywhere," says Zhang Jie, professor of architecture at Tsinghua University in Beijing.

Zhang's team and other architecture firms have also helped Jingdezhen redevelop an extensive area of old, large factory buildings as a new mixed-use quarter called Taoxichuan Ceramic Art Avenue. They preserve, restore and convert the old buildings while complementing them with new buildings.

Zhang was granted the gold and silver awards at the 2023 International Design Awards for his innovative work in Taoxichuan and Pengjia alley projects. They are lauded as a remarkable fusion of traditional culture with urban regeneration, which underscores the significance of preserving industrial heritage and historical relics within the global design narrative. These areas have been revitalized into dynamic hubs for residential, commercial and cultural heritage showcases.

"Our approaches are aimed at preserving Jingdezhen's historical landscape, including the ancient residential buildings along the Changjiang River, workshops, lanes, public facilities and ancient wharves," Zhang says.

The historical remnants of the imperial ceramic workshops on the site of the Pengjia alley, uncovered by archaeological excavations, have been injected with new life, while maintaining great respect for the culturally valuable remains. The combination of historical architecture and modern design has succeeded at a high formal and functional level. The result is an extraordinary place that plays with the contrast between old and new in a charming manner. With its different cultural offers, it invites visitors to go on a fascinating journey of discovery.

"When the rest of Jingdezhen's old area is restored to its original look, the city will be in a class by itself," Wang says.

China's National Cultural Heritage Administration has sent four teams from the National Center for Archaeology, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Peking University and the Palace Museum to help Jingdezhen find the underground relics. Archaeologists from Jiangxi province also joined the digging in the city, Wang says.

Jingdezhen's conservation of tradition, like the wood-fired kilns, has been a success. From 2009, 10 classic types of old kilns have been re-burned.

"We need to pass down our cultural heritage because that is the soul of the city," Wang says.