Thearchitecture of Taiwan can be traced back tostilt housing of the aborigines inprehistoric times; to the building of fortresses and churches in the north and south used to colonize and convert the inhabitants during theDutch andSpanish period; theTungning period when Taiwan was a base ofanti-Qing sentiment and Minnan-style architecture was introduced; inQing dynasty period, a mix of Chinese and Western architecture appeared andartillery battery flourished during Qing'sSelf-Strengthening Movement; During theJapanese rule of Taiwan, the Minnan,Japanese andWestern culture were main influencers in architectural designs and saw the introduction and use ofreinforced concrete. Due to excessive Westernization as a colony, after theretrocession of Taiwan to theRepublic of China in 1945 from Japan at the end of World War II, Chinese classical style became popular and entered into international mainstream as a postmodern design style. Today, Taiwanese architecture has undergone much diversification, every style of architecture can be seen.[1]
The architecture of prehistoric Taiwan saw structures ranging fromcave dwellings,stilt housing, tostone masonry. Primarily ofAustronesian architecture.[2]
Prehistoric man made use of caves for their dwellings, and Taiwan's oldest known civilization is theChangbin culture (長濱文化) dating back to over 50,000 years. An example of anarchaeological site of a cave dwelling is theBashian Caves inChangbin Township,Taitung County which is dated from between 5,500 and 30,000 years. The actual cave itself has a height of around tenmeters and can accommodate some ten persons.
Spread over the vast prehistoricPacific Ocean andIndian Ocean areas, stilt houses vary greatly. In more recent times, Taiwanese aborigines make use of them for holding church meetings, as places to cool down and to hold ancestral activities. Apart from their cooling effect, stilt houses also have various functions such as avoidingmiasma, dampness, flood, and insects and snakes from entering, it is also easier to construct.
ThePaiwan andBunun peoples made houses using thatched roofing and made walls from stones. Homes of nobles were decorated with elaborate wood carvings. The special characteristics of such houses is that dark colored building materials help conceal the buildings in its environment and the layered use of rocks mimic the scales of thehundred pacer snake that they worship.[3]
Chinese and aborigines made use of natural materials such as straw, wood, bamboo, grass, stone, and soil as basic construction materials. The types and styles of building vary depending on the environment, climate, and cultural influences of each ethnic group. For example, theAmis tend to live in larger communities and planned the layout of their community such as placement of communal homes and a plaza for matters of governance inside, planting a bamboo forest around the outside with camps and guard stations to defend against foreign aggressors.[4] TheAtayal andSaisiyat peoples made their homes out of wood and bamboo, while theTao people who lived further away onOrchid Island and faced strong changes in seasonal weather such as typhoons, developed houses that made use of digging vertically into the ground to strengthen their foundations.[5]
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
The 16th century was a time of Western naval navigation, exploration and trade and also the shifting of power from theMing dynasty to theQing dynasty. Most of the architecture in Taiwan from this period were dominated by fortresses, primarily the DutchFengguiwei Fort,Fort Zeelandia,Fort Provintia in the south and the Spanish Fort San Salvador (聖薩爾瓦多城),Fort Santo Domingo to the north. The Dutch used red bricks in construction while the Spanish used stone. Both sides made use of ports and constructed fortresses to consolidate their power on the island. The fortresses were square shaped with an additional side for the installment ofartillery. This period saw Taiwan architecture enter the peak ofWestern colonization. Such structures from this period represent the first generation of architectural works and is now listed as a world heritage by the Republic of China government.[6]
Fuzhou-style (Mindong) Architecture
Teochew-style architecture
.JPG)
Fort
.jpg)
.jpg)
-2.jpg)
.jpg)
.JPG)
Exotic Revival Style[7]
Early Modern Architecture[8]
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
%25E5%25AE%259A%25E5%258F%25A4%25E8%25B9%259F%25E5%25AF%25BA%25E5%25BB%259F_Venation_1.JPG)
.jpg)
Asian Renaissance Style(興亞式)[9] andImperial Crown Style
TheSecond World War served as a dividing point in Taiwanese architecture, bringing both political change and significant physical destruction. After the war a wave of new buildings was built with American aid, this influence lead to the dominance of theInternational Style. More contemporary architecture focuses on preserving the past as well as building new spaces, often finding ways to re-use historical or disused spaces.[10]
.jpg)
