Hybridisation and circulation of models in Tianjin’s former concessions

Abstract

The Italian and Wudadao districts in Tianjin, China, are two of the former foreign concessions established in the city during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Listed as historic sites in the late 1990s, they are now undergoing a rehabilitation process mobilised by various municipal agencies. These former concessions have become the most emblematic examples of urban regeneration and exotic heritage reutilisation in Tianjin. In this paper, we examine the preservation and rehabilitation of the former concessions from the perspective of hybridisation. In particular, we analyse the heritage trajectories of the former Italian and British concessions to identify the critical elements and forces that have shaped them. What influence did international actors have in their preservation, restoration and transformation? How did the public authorities position these districts in regard to the cultural context? How did their values and criteria evolve? What models were implemented, and how were they appropriated by local actors? We will show how this semi-colonial heritage has been integrated by the local authorities, real estate stakeholders, conservation associations and residents to produce transnational places that transcend geographies and borders.

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