Urban architextures : a search for an authentic Shanghai

As cities have evolved over history as a function of human behaviour, they represent the rich social laboratories of a particular civilization. Because of its ancient roots and its particular historical evolution, the urban tradition in China is appreciatively unique, but yet as China is rapidly thrust into modernity and post-modernity of global interdependence most evident in its urban centres, one can discern clearly the serious cultural disparities that threaten the social fabric of the Chinese people. It is through the massive development of its major metropolises that China is embarking on a disturbing trend of false development, a top-down process which imposes disparate images and illusory expectations on a politically-fatigued society. As the centrepiece of China's entrance onto the international stage, the city of Shanghai represents both the vision of Chinas future, but perhaps also its social demise