Let the city leave memories and let people remember nostalgia

People\’s Daily – People\’s Daily

The group of wok ear houses in Lingnan Tiandi embodies the good wishes of abundant food and clothing. Information pictures

A lighting decoration in Lingnan Tiandi, Foshan, Guangdong. The fish lantern means more than enough every year. Photographed by Huang Jiamin

Blue brick houses, stone roads, wok-eared walls, and carved eaves outline the authentic Lingnan flavor; time-honored shops, pawn shops, Jane\’s Villa, and Longtang Poetry Society tell the story of the long history Stories; pottery shops, literary groceries, coffee shops, and specialty food stalls, revealing a fashionable atmosphere and a literary style… In the center of Foshan, Guangdong, you can get these rich experiences when you step into Lingnan World.

In the process of urban development, how to protect and revitalize dense cultural relics units? How do traditional historic districts integrate with modern commerce? Lingnan Tiandi, located in Zumiao Street, Chancheng District, Foshan, has made a series of explorations.

Protection:

Restore the old as before, retaining nostalgia

\”To check in the millennium memory, come to Lingnan World\” \”The memory of old Foshan, the history of Lingnan , the traditional cultural features can be appreciated here, and no matter how many times you come here, it is never enough.\”… Searching for \”Lingnan Tiandi\” on the Internet, there are tens of thousands of comments, likes, beautiful pictures, short videos, etc. from netizens.

Foshan Ancestral Temple, Donghuali Historic District and other national-level cultural relics protection units, and provincial-level cultural relics protection units such as Jane\’s Villa and Wenhuili Wedding House… Lingnan Tiandi gathers 22 cultural relics protection units, each of which Traditional Lingnan shops with a long history are also scattered among them. During the development process, Lingnan Tiandi adopted a renovation model of restoring the old as before, allowing a large number of Lingnan characteristic buildings to be preserved, and the entire block also retained its traditional style and historical memory.

“Before the renovation, the entire area was very dilapidated and decayed, including many cultural protection units.The historical buildings inside are in danger, with people living everywhere and wires…\” Liu Zhicheng, secretary of the Party Working Committee of Zumiao Street, recalled, \”For example, Jane\’s Villa was used as a dormitory for employees of a certain unit at the time. The protection of cultural relics poses a great threat. ”

The protection and transformation of the Lingnan Tiandi area is urgent, but what should we do in the face of so many cultural protection units and historical buildings?

Liu Zhicheng said that in the process of transformation of traditional historical blocks Can\’t be demolished In construction, there must be a spirit of ingenuity, more use of embroidery techniques such as micro-renovation, and special respect for cultural relics, so that the city can leave memories and let people remember their nostalgia.

“Carry out careful repairs to cultural relics. Needless to say, it’s the same as before. Our renovation of the entire neighborhood was faithful to the local style and traditional materials. For example, even if the dilapidated residential houses were completely demolished, the old bricks and tiles that were removed were basically recycled and used. \”Wen Dechun, deputy project director of the real estate company responsible for the renovation and renewal of Lingnan Tiandi, said, \”The cost of using old materials to build and decorate is generally several times that of a new house. However, in order to maintain the historical characteristics and retain the style of the streets and lanes, economic costs must give way. ”

Now, while walking slowly in Lingnan Tiandi, various historical and cultural details come one after another, which are full of historical interest and knowledge. The stone road under your feet has a history of a hundred years; the water-milled blue bricks in front of you are made of high-quality bluestone. , made by hand, a skilled worker can only polish 7 pieces at most in a day; head-up, herringbone gables are used to prevent wind and fire, and wok ears are used to seal fire. The gable embodies good wishes for abundant food and clothing; if you search carefully, you will find the traditional engraved \”real estate certificate\” – wall boundary stone, and the ancient \”security door\” – Tangshuomen…

Development:

According to the historical texture, let the building be revitalized

In the Ancestral Temple Museum, people appreciate the magnificence of the ancient architectural art of the Ming and Qing Dynasties and learn about the traditions of Foshan For folk customs, we visited Huang Feihong Memorial Hall and Ip Man Hall. After exiting the east gate, we entered Lingnan Tiandi Zumiao Street.

The first thing we encountered when entering from Zumiao Street was the wine shop built during the Jiaqing period of the Qing Dynasty. At that time, it was a place for gatherings and discussions of important matters in the wine industry. Now, the wine shop hall is mainly used for the display and dissemination of Lingnan wine culture. , is the ancestral shop of Li Zhongshengtang. The founder, Li Zhaoji, created many famous brand Chinese patent medicines. Moving forward, it is the most prosperous downtown in Foshan in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties. Today, there are still dense shops, and traditional shops such as Foshan time-honored brands tell the story of their long history. Historical story…

“Lingnan Tiandi has nearly 200 locations, and we have our own standards for the selection of commercial stores. \”Wen Dechun said, \”We will provide preferential policies to \’invite\’ local century-old stores and traditional brands with strong local characteristics. For stores with historical accumulation such as wine shops and clubs, we will continue their relationship with wine. What is retained and what is developed is done according to the historical texture. ”

In the traditional Lingnan-style building, Kung Fu, Cantonese opera, paper-cutting, wood carvings, Southern lions, New Year pictures and other living intangible cultural heritage are in full bloom.

Every afternoon, in the Lingnan Tiandi YuanIn Jihuang Gong Temple, the melodious Lingnan ancient tune sounds, which always makes citizens and tourists stop and listen. The Chancheng District Culture and Sports Bureau has contacted cultural associations to provide citizens with public cultural services full of Lingnan charm in prime locations in the city. Traditional Cantonese opera has been passed down, more citizens and tourists can enjoy the performances, and the popularity of the business district can also be gathered, achieving multiple goals. Every Cantonese opera performance here attracts many audiences, including many foreign faces.

The abundance of colorful activities makes historical buildings more vibrant and old neighborhoods revitalized with new vitality – Foshan Kung Fu Corner invites well-known martial arts schools in Foshan to conduct regular public performances to provide tourists with a close-up view of the Southern style. The charm of kung fu; Chen Yongcai Paper Cutting Art Garden and Ho Yaohui Wood Carving Studio bring the beauty of intangible cultural heritage closer to young people ; A unique neighborhood that collects all kinds of traditional Lingnan snacks, attracting diners from all over; various traditional cultural exhibitions are widely forwarded in the circle of friends…

Liu Zhicheng said with emotion that the protection and development of cultural relics Utilization is not a pair of irreconcilable contradictions. The renewal of historical districts and the inheritance of historical culture can also achieve mutual success.

Trend:

Internet celebrity check-in place, leisure destination

Old neighborhood, new business formats. If inheriting history and culture is the soul of Lingnan Tiandi, then modern facilities such as solar lighting systems, wind catcher systems, green roofs, green walls, tiled insulated roofs of historical buildings, and stylish furnishings have given people The comfortable experience and one-stop service of travel, shopping and entertainment attract young people to come and check in… Liu Zhicheng said, \”The purpose is to create a tourism, leisure, and cultural destination that is loved by citizens and tourists, and a city living room that Foshan people can be proud of.\”

Wandering in the long streets and alleys, wooden plaques are hung outside. , the Starbucks Lingnan Tiandi store decorated with palace lanterns, birdcage lanterns and Ming-style furniture attracted the attention of tourists. \”Starbucks can also have such a Chinese flavor, integrating Chinese and Western styles, and being very fashionable!\” Many netizens commented.

Old neighborhoods and new concepts, Chinese presentation and foreign content, create different sparks. Wen Dechun said, “All cooperative merchants must adhere to unified requirements in terms of interior and exterior store decoration standards. Even international chain brands such as Haagen-Dazs and Starbucks, which pay attention to standardization of store decoration, also pay attention to store style when they enter Lingnan Tiandi. did very Big adjustments have been made to specially design the unique \”Lingnan Tiandi Special Edition\” in the world, which is very eye-catching.\”

Since 2013, Lingnan Tiandi has been regularly displayed in Wenhuili, a provincial cultural relic protection unit. Marriage House holds a Chinese-style collective wedding. In 2019, 10 couples from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area were recruited to hold a \”Trendy Wedding Show, Love in Heaven and Earth\” Lingnan Chinese-style collective wedding in the wedding house. In addition to traditional customs, the wedding adds a lot of youthful, fun and fashionable elements, attracting the attention of quite a few young people.

Similarly, Lingnan Tiandi explores historical and cultural characteristics such as the hometown of Cantonese opera, martial arts, food, and pottery, and integrates fashion elements and modern packaging to bring people multi-layered richness cultural experience.

Lingnan Tiandi also often holds international exhibitions, forums and activities. In May last year, we joined hands with the Consulate General of France in Guangzhou to hold the \”Sino-French Cultural Spring\” art exchange in South China; in August, we gathered artists from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and international artists to hold the \”Art Back to Donghuali\” artist joint exhibition… Passed A series of art and cultural exhibitions where diverse cultures dialogue, cross-border and collide.

Data show that Lingnan Tiandi’s average daily tourist flow during holidays reaches 50,000 to 100,000, and the total number of tourists in 2019 exceeded 20 million.

“It can fully respect the historical heritage and actively meet the living needs of modern residents. Lingnan Tiandi has certainly become our best choice for gathering, playing and slow travel!” Foshan citizen, “post-90s” Liao Yi said.

Format design: Shen Yiling

\”People\’s Daily\” (Page 05, October 06, 2020)