Interested in an exciting and engaging study abroad experience in China? Read on to learn more about this amazing opportunity:
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE CHINA: DESIGN / BUILD GUIYANG, CHINA
Program Description
We will collaborate with students and faculty from the School of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Guizhou Normal University Guiyang, Guizhou province to design and build a play space for disabled children from a local village. We will live and work in the Yelang Valley Park, Guiyang, near the Normal University Guiyang. We will create a series of landscape and sculptural elements for use by disabled children from near by communities. Our project will complement the unique forms and features of this unusual / sculpture park, Yelang Valley, created by the artist Song Peilun, who over 17 years built this memorial to a disappeared tribe who lived in Guizhou a thousand years ago. Yelang Valley is in a forested area far from Guiyang downtown, however through rapid urbanization, the government has moved many universities into this area. Yenglang Valley is next to the campus of Guizhou finance University and Guizhou Normal University. The park occupies about 200,000 m2. There is a small Buyi minority village nearby (15 minutes away by walk) and the level of craft within the park is an amazing combination of dry stone, wood and terracotta sculptural elements.
In this program students will design and construct the landscape elements and learn:
The principles of craft and design, construction drawing documentation, construction, materials and field sketching. We will be working with local Chinese builders who specialize in traditional building techniques.
The location of the program is an area unique with many ethnic traditional villages in close proximity to the program site and unique geological and ecological features such as karst canyons and waterfalls. The surrounding area features cheap local cuisine and nightlife.
Pre-Requisites / Language Requirements / Physical Components
The program is open to all students from all disciplines and previous construction experience is not required. The focus is on environmental therapeutic design and construction. Other themes will be craft and material fabrication, historic/cultural design, working with people with disabilities, ecology, and art. The program is open to both undergraduate and graduate students from the U of WA and other university and colleges. Non-matriculated students should apply. The accommodations will be small-scale dormitory with shared rooms.
The program will require physical effort so all applicants should be able to work for 8 hours per day. Some of the field trips require walking and hiking. Most of the people we will be working with speak English and translators will also be involved with the project.