Students put best feet forward in Zhangyuan
Jarmo Suominen and students.
Some 40 university students from diverse backgrounds took part in a walking tour of historic Zhangyuan, delving into its significant role in Shanghai's urban renewal landscape.
They were from 13 prestigious institutions both here and abroad, including Laguna College of Art and Design in US, the University of Hong Kong, and Tsinghua University.
The Friday afternoon tour was guided by Jarmo Suominen, vice dean of Shanghai International College of Design and Innovation, a joint institution by Shanghai's Tongji University and Finland's Aalto University.
Students walk through lanes in Zhangyuan.
As a local resident who lives just next door to Zhangyuan, he knows the area well.
Zhangyuan, or Zhang's Garden, opened to the public in 1885 as China's first modern pleasure garden, but later declined, being divided and sold to 28 developers around 1919.
Over the years, the stately residences were partitioned into smaller units occupied by multiple families, which led to squalid living conditions, with shared kitchens and toilets, and cracked walls and leaky ceilings.
To revive its former glory, Jing'an District government launched an urban renewal plan for Zhangyuan in 2018. Residents were relocated. The historic buildings were preserved, restored to their original look, and renovated for modern use.
In November 2022, as renovation of the western section concluded, it opened as a site of fashion, culture and commerce.
Jarmo Suominen with his sketch of Zhangyuan. It includes a woman in qipao who he meets during the tour.
"Starting from the original, I think there was an amusement park," Suominen explained to students. "Then it became a housing area, then it becomes this kind of a more commercial thing. And what next?
"I think what has been done here so far is that they created the buildings and physical environment. What should be done next is about the community, the attraction to different people. Now we want to add layers, like cultural or more humble things. I want the students to pay attention to the kind of the different levels of the development."
Having lived in Shanghai for about 10 years, Suominen gives the thumbs-up to the city's urban renewal.
"I really love these old neighborhoods," he said. "It's amazing to see how they are renovated to be a kind of environment for new generations. I think the diversity is the essence of Shanghai. It's why I moved here."
