Art hub in search of its original mojo

"At the beginning, I didn't really mean to make a contribution to the effort. But as time passed, I began to realize the importance of protecting the origins of the place," says Zhou.

In the past decade, more than 500 households have followed in Zhou's footsteps to convert their houses to non-residential units.

While the interiors of many of the buildings have since been renovated and given a new coat of paint, the old brick facades from which Tianzifang gets its charm, are still very much intact.

The facelift was a success and Tianzifang was buzzing with activity. Middle-aged housewives carrying bags of vegetables would squeeze past expats sipping cappuccino at outdoor cafes.

Laundry would hang from balconies as new-age music spilled through windows of boutique shops on the ground floor. Between 2004 and 2008, as many as 6,000 people would walk along Taikang Road's crowded lanes on weekends.

In 2008, the government took over Tianzifang and shifted the focus from developing the place into an art and culture hub to commercialization, security and property management.

As one of the first shop owners to arrive on Lane 274 in 2007, Yan Hongliang, who sells ceramic art designed and produced in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, has witnessed the tremendous changes that have taken place since.

The one that made the most impact is rent.

At the beginning, Yan only had to pay around 6,000 yuan a month for his 60-sq-m shop. He is now paying 40,000 yuan and said that the rent will exceed 60,000 yuan after his current contract expires in two years.

Having already struggled to break even in the first few years of his business, the exorbitant rent now has made doing business in Tianzifang unrealistic.

"The pressure caused by the booming real estate market has sped up the commercialization of Tianzifang. The place is now filled with more tourism-related items instead of original art works," says Yan, adding that he plans to move out of Tianzifang after fulfilling his rental contract despite his attachment to the area.

"The rent has been increasing but the prices of goods have remained low. It's no surprise that many talented artists are leaving the area," says Zhou Xinliang, the resident of Tianzifang.

According to sociology professor Yu Hai, there are currently 586 shops in the area. Over the past five years, retail outlets have steadily replaced the art studios and galleries, which now account for just 2 percent of the shops in Tianzifang. In contrast, about 20 percent of the units are clothing stores.

Unsurprisingly, Yu's survey reveals that many shop owners have cited the rising rent - it has increased at least ten-fold in 20 years - as the primary reason for relocating.