From Division to Fusion

Abstract

A great shift of human population from rural environments into cities has caused worldwide political and security issues. This movement has engaged, and will continue to affect, as much as one third of the world’s population. One of the most striking results is the creation of a distinct urban space – the village in the city. Unlike squatter settlements in most developing countries, the housing of migrant workers in China is exclusively restricted to informal rentals in Villages-in-the-City (ViCs), which causes them to continually change locations. This dynamic relationship between migrant workers and their living place is based on three factors: the physical environment, interpersonal relationships, and a high-mobility lifestyle. Understanding scales of place can then serve as alternative guidance for architectural intervention in order to rethink the form of ViCs.