Lin Huiyin ( zh, c=林徽因, born 林徽音, p=Lín Huīyīn; 10 June 1904 – 1 April 1955; known as Phyllis Whei Yin Lin
when studying in the United States) was a Chinese
architect
An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
, writer, and poet. She is known to be the first female architect in modern China.
Her husband was
Liang Sicheng
Liang Sicheng ( zh, c=梁思成; 20 April 1901 – 9 January 1972) was a Chinese architect and architectural historian, known as the father of modern Chinese architecture. His father, Liang Qichao, was one of the most prominent Chinese scholar ...
, named as the "father of modern Chinese architecture".
In the ninth year of the Republic of China (1920), Lin Huiyin traveled to Europe with her father Lin Changmin. In the twelfth year of the Republic of China (1923), she participated in the activities of the
Crescent Moon Society. In the thirteenth year of the Republic of China (1924), she studied in the United States at the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...
School of Fine Arts, taking courses in the Department of Architecture and earning a Bachelor of
Arts degree (to be posthumously awarded a Bachelor of Architecture degree in 2024). Later, she studied at the
Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
School of Drama in the Department of Stage Art. Department of
Northeastern University
Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...
in 1928, together with
Liang Sicheng
Liang Sicheng ( zh, c=梁思成; 20 April 1901 – 9 January 1972) was a Chinese architect and architectural historian, known as the father of modern Chinese architecture. His father, Liang Qichao, was one of the most prominent Chinese scholar ...
, she annotated and reviewed the "
Great Tang Records on the Western Regions" from the collection of the Chinese Architecture Society (hundreds of Tang Dynasty buildings and place names), discovering the Tang Dynasty architecture – the
Foguang Temple on
Mount Wutai
Mount Wutai, also known by its Chinese name Wutaishan and as is a sacred Buddhist site at the headwaters of the Qingshui in Shanxi Province, China. Its central area is surrounded by a cluster of flat-topped peaks or mesas roughly correspondin ...
. After the liberation, Lin Huiyin made contributions to the design of the
emblem of the People's Republic of China
The National Emblem of the People's Republic of China is a national symbol of the China, People's Republic of China and contains in a red circle a representation of Tiananmen, Tiananmen Gate, the entrance gate to the Forbidden City chinese pa ...
, the design of the
Monument to the People's Heroes
The Monument to the People's Heroes () is a ten-story obelisk that was erected as a national monument of China to the Martyr (China), martyrs of revolutionary struggle during the 19th and 20th centuries. It is located in the southern part of Tiana ...
, and the innovation of
cloisonné
Cloisonné () is an ancient technology, ancient technique for decorating metalwork objects with colored material held in place or separated by metal strips or wire, normally of gold. In recent centuries, vitreous enamel has been used, but inla ...
craftsmanship, and authored "Poetry Collection of Lin Huiyin" and "Essays of Lin Huiyin".
After 1949, as professors in
Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University (THU) is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Constructio ...
in Beijing, Liang and Lin began restoration work on cultural heritage sites of China in the post-imperial
Republican Era of China, a passion which she would pursue to the end of her life. The American artist
Maya Lin is her niece and the American poet
Tan Lin is her nephew.
[Peter G. Rowe, Seng Kuan, ''Architectural Encounters With Essence and Form in Modern China'', MIT Press, 2002, p.219, ]
Early life and education
Early life
Lin was born in
Hangzhou
Hangzhou, , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly romanized as Hangchow is a sub-provincial city in East China and the capital of Zhejiang province. With a population of 13 million, the municipality comprises ten districts, two counti ...
though her family was from
Minhou. She was the daughter of Lin Changmin (林長民) (16 September 1876 - Minhou, 24 December 1925) and He Xueyuan (何雪媛) (1882–1972).
At the age of 5, she was tutored by her great-aunt Lin Zemin; at 8, she moved to Shanghai and attended the Hongkou Patriotic Primary School.
In the third year of the Republic of China (1914), Lin Huiyin came to Beijing with her grandfather and lived with her father in Qianwanggongchang.
Secondary education
In 1916, she attended the Peking Pei Hua Girls' School, which was run by the British Church.
In April 1920, she traveled to
Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
with her father, and was influenced by a female architect, who was her landlord in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, to pursue the study of
architecture
Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...
. During this time, she also met her father's disciple
Xu Zhimo and developed a strong interest in modern poetry.
After more than a month of traveling in Europe, Lin Huiyin and his father came to London, England. In order not to delay his daughter's studies, Lin Changmin sent Lin Huiyin to St Mary's Girls School in London and hired an English tutor for her. During her more than one year in England, Lin Huiyin read a large amount of Western literature and got used to Western lifestyles such as afternoon tea.
In 1921, she returned to Beijing, China, with her father and continued her studies at Pei Hua Girls' School.
In 1923,
Xu Zhimo,
Hu Shi, and others established the
Crescent Moon Society in Beijing, where Lin Huiyin often participated in the literary and artistic activities.
In April 1924, the sixty-four-year old Indian poet
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Thakur (; anglicised as Rabindranath Tagore ; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengalis, Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer, and painter of the Bengal Renai ...
visited China. Lin Huiyin, along with Xu Zhimo, Liang Sicheng, and others, accompanied Tagore on a tour of Beijing. Lin Huiyin and Xu Zhimo worked together to do the interpretation work for Tagore, during which Lin Huiyin distinguished herself with her fluent English and also won the admiration in a poet. Tagore wrote a poem for Lin Huiyin: The azure of the sky fell in love with the verdant green of the earth, and the breeze between them sighed "Alas!"
In a time when women had limited access to formal education, Lin was able to receive a formal education due to being part of a wealthy family. Because of her family's affluence she was able to travel extensively with her father. She obtained her degrees both in England and the United States.
However, Lin's works are highly regarded. Lin wrote free verse, novels and prose. Lin's poems appeared in publications such as the ''Beijing Morning Post'', ''Crescent Monthly'', ''Poetry and the Dipper'' and the newspaper ''L'impartiale'' in
Tianjin
Tianjin is a direct-administered municipality in North China, northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the National Central City, nine national central cities, with a total population of 13,866,009 inhabitants at the time of the ...
.
Higher education
In 1924, Lin Huiyin and Liang Sicheng both enrolled at the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...
, where she also worked as a part-time assistant at the architectural department.
Although they both wanted to pursue architecture studies at the School of Architecture, Lin was not admitted simply because she was a woman.
She therefore enrolled at the School of Fine Arts. Despite the university's gender-discriminatory policies, Lin still pursued her passion for architecture and took rigorous architecture courses.
Both being born in Dragon year, Lin Huiyin and Liang Sicheng attended school and foster the birth of Chinese architect. It was here that Lin along with Liang, her future husband and whom she had known since childhood, pursued their love of architecture.
In 1927, Lin completed the requirements for a
Bachelor of Architecture degree. However, because she was a woman, she was not allowed to receive a Bachelor of Architecture degree. On February 24, 1927, Lin was conferred a
Bachelor of Fine Arts
A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) is a standard undergraduate degree for students pursuing a professional education in the visual arts, Fine art, or performing arts. In some instances, it is also called a Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA).
Background ...
degree.
On October 15, 2023, the University of Pennsylvania decided to correct this century-old gender-discriminatory practice against her. In 2024, the university officially decided to posthumously confer Lin the degree of Bachelor of Architecture. On May 18, 2024, Lin's granddaughter Yu Kui () attended the
Stuart Weitzman School of Design commencement on behalf of Lin and collected Lin's degree diploma from the school's dean
Frederick Steiner.
The diploma of the Bachelor of Architecture degree was dated February 1927, the month Lin originally graduated from the university.
After her graduation from the University of Pennsylvania in 1927, Lin enrolled in stage design programs in
Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
as a graduate student, pursuing her longtime interest in drama.
Early career
On September 20, 1925, Lin Huiyin's photograph was featured on the front page of the 268th issue of ''The Eastern Times Photo Supplement'' (), a Shanghai-based newspaper photography supplement.
In 1928, Lin Huiyin accepted the marriage proposal from Liang Sicheng. After their wedding, they traveled to Europe to study European architecture.
In August 1928, the couple returned to China together and were both employed by the Department of Architecture at
Northeastern University
Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...
in
Shenyang
Shenyang,; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly known as Fengtian formerly known by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a sub-provincial city in China and the list of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Liaonin ...
. Before taking up her post, Lin Huiyin went back to Fuzhou to visit her relatives and was invited by Fuzhou Normal School and Yinghua Middle School to give lectures on "Architecture and Literature" and "Garden Architecture Art". She also designed the Fuzhou East Street Art Theater (; nowadays known as Fuzhou All-Spring Garden, ) for her uncle Lin Tianmin (). The following year, she taught the courses of "History of Decorative Art" () and "Professional English" () at Northeastern University; her husband Liang Sicheng taught the course of "Introduction to Architecture Studies" ().
In the early 1930s, she and her husband met and became deep friends with the American scholars,
John King Fairbank
John King Fairbank (May 24, 1907September 14, 1991) was an American historian of China and United States–China relations. He taught at Harvard University from 1936 until his retirement in 1977. He is credited with building the field of China ...
and
Wilma Fairbank.
Career
Japanese invasion of China
In the wake of the
September 18th Incident, Lin left for Beijing, where she studied ancient Chinese architecture. Upon her return, she helped establish the Architectural Department at
Northeastern University
Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...
in
Shenyang
Shenyang,; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly known as Fengtian formerly known by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a sub-provincial city in China and the list of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Liaonin ...
, where she then taught architecture briefly. Meanwhile, in 1928, she designed a railway station in
Jilin
)
, image_skyline = Changbaishan Tianchi from western rim.jpg
, image_alt =
, image_caption = View of Heaven Lake
, image_map = Jilin in China (+all claims hatched).svg
, mapsize = 275px
, map_al ...
. This was one of the few buildings Lin designed. Throughout the 1930s, Lin and her husband lived in
Beiping
"Beijing" is from pinyin ''Běijīng,'' which is romanized from , the Chinese name for this city. The pinyin system of transliteration was approved by the Chinese government in 1958, but little used until 1979. It was gradually adopted by various ...
(nowadays Beijing) near both of their families. Close friends at the time were the Americans Wilma and
John K. Fairbank, who admired her sense of living on a "kind of double cultural frontier," and facing the problem of "the necessity to winnow the past and discriminate among things foreign, what to preserve and what to borrow." He recalled the joy she took when she and her husband climbed the roof of the
Temple of Heaven
The Temple of Heaven () is a complex of imperial Religious Confucianism, religious Confucian buildings situated in the southeastern part of central Beijing. The complex was visited by the Emperor of China, Emperors of the Ming dynasty, Ming and ...
, which made her the first woman to attempt the walk on the emperor's palace roof and when in 1937, she discovered the main hall of
Foguang Temple near Doucun, Shanxi.
Li Huiyin and Liang Sicheng, during the 15 years from 1930 to 1945, conducted surveys on 2738 ancient buildings in 190 counties. Many of these ancient structures gained national and international recognition through their research, leading to their protection. Notable examples include the
Zhaozhou Bridge in Hebei, the
Yingxian Wooden Pagoda in Shanxi, and the
Foguang Temple on
Mount Wutai
Mount Wutai, also known by its Chinese name Wutaishan and as is a sacred Buddhist site at the headwaters of the Qingshui in Shanxi Province, China. Its central area is surrounded by a cluster of flat-topped peaks or mesas roughly correspondin ...
.
In 1931, Lin Huiyin was employed by the Peking Society for the Study of Chinese Architecture (Zhongguo Yingzao Xuehui). The following year, she designed the Geological Hall and the Grey Building student dormitory for
Peking University
Peking University (PKU) is a Public university, public Types of universities and colleges in China#By designated academic emphasis, university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of the Peop ...
.Over the next several years, she frequently traveled to various provinces such as
Shanxi
Shanxi; Chinese postal romanization, formerly romanised as Shansi is a Provinces of China, province in North China. Its capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level cities are Changzhi a ...
,
Hebei
Hebei is a Provinces of China, province in North China. It is China's List of Chinese administrative divisions by population, sixth-most populous province, with a population of over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. It bor ...
,
Shandong
Shandong is a coastal Provinces of China, province in East China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River. It has served as a pivotal cultural ...
,
Henan
Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...
, and
Zhejiang
)
, translit_lang1_type2 =
, translit_lang1_info2 = ( Hangzhounese) ( Ningbonese) (Wenzhounese)
, image_skyline = 玉甑峰全貌 - panoramio.jpg
, image_caption = View of the Yandang Mountains
, image_map = Zhejiang i ...
to conduct field surveys and measurements of dozens of ancient buildings. She published papers and reports on architecture, either independently or in collaboration with Liang Sicheng, including "On Several Characteristics of Chinese Architecture," "Miscellaneous Records of Architecture in the Suburbs of Peking," and "A Brief Survey of Ancient Architecture in Jin and Fen." She also wrote the introduction for Liang Sicheng's book "Qing Style Construction Rules".
Li Huiyin and Liang Sicheng went to Henan for an inspection. They arrived in
Jinan
Jinan is the capital of the province of Shandong in East China. With a population of 9.2 million, it is one of the largest cities in Shandong in terms of population. The area of present-day Jinan has played an important role in the history of ...
in the latter half of June.
In the summer of 1937, she discovered the oldest wooden structure in China in the
Wutai Mountain
Mount Wutai, also known by its Chinese name Wutaishan and as is a sacred Chinese Buddhism, Buddhist site at the headwaters of the Qingshui (Shanxi), Qingshui in Shanxi Province, China. Its central area is surrounded by a cluster of flat-topped ...
area of Shanxi—the
Foguang Temple Main Hall, which was built during the
Tang Dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...
.

As Japan's invasion loomed, Lin Huiyin and her husband had to cut-short their promising restoration work of Beijing's cultural heritage sites in 1937 and abandoned their now famous courtyard residence in Beijing to flee southward along with personnel and materials of the Architectural Department of Northeastern University; their exodus led them and their children to temporary sojourns in the cities of
Tianjin
Tianjin is a direct-administered municipality in North China, northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the National Central City, nine national central cities, with a total population of 13,866,009 inhabitants at the time of the ...
,
Kunming
Kunming is the capital and largest city of the province of Yunnan in China. The political, economic, communications and cultural centre of the province, Kunming is also the seat of the provincial government. During World War II, Kunming was a Ch ...
, and finally
Lizhuang in 1940.
It was in Lizhuang where the bedridden Lin, still suffering from tuberculosis, was told of her younger brother's death while serving as a combat aviator in the
air force
An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...
in the
defense of Sichuan.
Lin wrote a poetic memorial:
In the wake of the
Lugouqiao Incident, Lin Huiyin and Liang Sicheng moved with the Architecture Society first to
Changsha
Changsha is the capital of Hunan, China. It is the 15th most populous city in China with a population of 10,513,100, the Central China#Cities with urban area over one million in population, third-most populous city in Central China, and the ...
, and then in January 1938 to
Kunming
Kunming is the capital and largest city of the province of Yunnan in China. The political, economic, communications and cultural centre of the province, Kunming is also the seat of the provincial government. During World War II, Kunming was a Ch ...
, where they lived in a residence called "Zhiyuan" on Xunjin Street. The first research project they undertook was a survey of ancient buildings in Kunming. Liang Sicheng was often away for field investigations, while Lin Huiyin stayed at Xingguo An, managing daily affairs, taking care of and educating their children, and organizing a large amount of drawings and textual materials.
From October to November 1938, more than 50 main ancient buildings in Kunming, including
Yuantong TempleTuzu Temple Jianshu Guild Hall,
Eastern and Western PagodasZhenqing TempleHall, and th
were surveyed by Lin Huiyin and Liang Sicheng.
In 1940, she followed Liang Sicheng's work unit, the
Academia Sinica
Academia Sinica (AS, ; zh, t=中央研究院) is the national academy of the Taiwan, Republic of China. It is headquartered in Nangang District, Taipei, Nangang, Taipei.
Founded in Nanjing, the academy supports research activities in mathemat ...
, to Lizhuang near
Yibin
Yibin ( zh, s=宜宾 , t=宜賓 , p=Yíbīn , w=I-pin, region=CN-SC-15; Sichuanese Pinyin: ȵi2bin1; Sichuanese pronunciation: ) is a prefecture-level city in the southeastern part of Sichuan province, China, located at the junction of the Min ...
, Sichuan, and lived in a low, dilapidated farmhouse.
The life of displacement and the harsh material conditions led to a recurrence of her lung disease. On her sickbed, she read the parts of the
Twenty-Four Histories
The ''Twenty-Four Histories'', also known as the ''Orthodox Histories'' (), are a collection of official histories detailing the dynasties of China, from the legendary Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors in the 4th millennium BC to the Ming ...
related to architecture, collecting materials for writing "A History of Chinese Architecture," often working late into the night. During this period, her literary works were not many, and in her poetry drafts, confusion, melancholy, desolation, and depression had replaced the tranquility, elegance, clarity, and gentleness of the style before the war. The poems often revealed her concern for the future and fate of the motherland.
After the war
After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, Lin Huiyin's family returned to Beiping in August 1946. Soon after, she designed faculty housing for
Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University (THU) is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Constructio ...
and accepted design tasks outside the school.
In May 1948, she published nine poems titled "Miscellaneous Poems Written While Ill" (《病中杂诗》) in the "Literary Magazine" (《文学杂志》). At the end of that year, the outskirts of Beiping, where Tsinghua University was located, were liberated by the People's Liberation Army, which encircled the ancient capital. Lin Huiyin and her husband were deeply worried about the destruction of the majestic and magnificent ancient buildings with carved beams and painted rafters within the city, which might be destroyed by the war.
In early 1949, the sudden visit of two representatives of the People's Liberation Army, who showed a protective attitude towards important cultural relics and ancient sites, dispelled their doubts about the Communist Party. They compiled the "National List of Cultural Relics and Ancient Buildings" at the request of the People's Liberation Army. This book later evolved into the "National Cultural Relics Protection Catalogue".
People's Republic of China
After 1949, Lin Huiyin became a professor of architecture at
Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University (THU) is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Constructio ...
. As a literary writer and architectural historian, Lin Huiyin rebuilt the capital from the aspects of cultural tradition, architectural beauty, historical significance, and living conditions of the people. Meanwhile, Lin Huiyin participated in the design of the
National emblem
A national emblem is an emblem or seal that is reserved for use by a nation state or multi-national state as a symbol of that nation. Many nations have a seal or emblem in addition to a national flag.
Other national symbols, such as national ...
and the
Monument to the People's Heroes
The Monument to the People's Heroes () is a ten-story obelisk that was erected as a national monument of China to the Martyr (China), martyrs of revolutionary struggle during the 19th and 20th centuries. It is located in the southern part of Tiana ...
. Lin designed the floral wreath patterns at the base of the Monument to the People's Heroes. Lin also took part in the standardization of Beijing city planning.
In 1950, Lin Huiyin was specially invited to attend the second session of the first National Political Consultative Conference and was appointed as a member of the Beijing City Planning Committee and an engineer. She proposed the idea of building a "City Wall Park".
In 1951, at the age of 47, in order to save the traditional craft of
cloisonné
Cloisonné () is an ancient technology, ancient technique for decorating metalwork objects with colored material held in place or separated by metal strips or wire, normally of gold. In recent centuries, vitreous enamel has been used, but inla ...
, which was on the verge of bankruptcy, Lin Huiyin, despite being ill, worked with Gao Zhuang, Mo Zongjiang, Chang Shana, Qian Meihua, and Sun Junlian to conduct research in factories and designed a series of novel patterns with national characteristics for the "
Asia and Pacific Rim Peace Conference
The Asia and Pacific Rim Peace Conference was held in Beijing, China from October 2–12, 1952. Delegates from dozens of countries attended the conference, which including a number of speeches and opening remarks by Chinese communist leader Mao Zed ...
" and the "Soviet Cultural Delegation".
In May 1953, Beijing began to consider the demolition of the city's traditional "
pai lou" (archway structures), marking the start of a large-scale removal of ancient architecture in the city. To save the only remaining complete archway street from being destroyed due to political reasons, Liang Sicheng, the husband of Lin Huiyin, had a fierce argument with
Wu Han, who was then the Deputy Mayor of Beijing. Soon after, at a dinner party hosted by
Zheng Zhenduo, the director of the Bureau of Cultural Affairs of the Ministry of Culture, which was attended by well-known figures in the field of cultural relics, Lin Huiyin and Wu Han had a face-to-face confrontation. Subsequently, Lin Huiyin's health deteriorated sharply, and she eventually refused medical treatment.
In October 1953, Lin Huiyin was elected as a member of the first council of the
Architectural Society of China (中国建筑学会), a member of the China Architecture Research Committee (中国建筑研究委员会), and an editorial board member of the Architectural Journal (《建筑学报》).
In June 1954, she was elected as a congresswoman at the Beijing Municipal People's Congress.
On April 1, 1955, Lin Huiyin died of illness (
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...
[Andrew Jacobs, In Beijing’s Building Frenzy, Even an ‘Immovable Cultural Relic’ Is Not Safe, New York Times, New York edition, February 5, 2012, page A6]) in
Beijing Tongren Hospital in
Dongcheng, Beijing.
On April 2, ''
The Beijing Daily'' published Lin Huiyin's obituary. On April 3, a memorial service for Lin Huiyin was held at Xianliang Temple in Jinyu Hutong (金鱼胡同贤良寺), and her body was buried in
Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery
The Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery () is Beijing's main resting place for the highest-ranking revolutionary heroes, high-ranking government officials and, in recent years, individuals deemed of major importance due to their contributions to soc ...
.
The funeral committee for Lin Huiyin consisted of 13 people, including
Zhang Xiruo,
Zhou Peiyuan, Qian Duan Sheng,
Qian Weichang, and
Jin Yuelin.
Publications
Lin Huiyin wrote poems, essays, short stories and plays. Many of her works were praised for their subtlety, beauty, and creativity. Some of her more well known works are: ''Smile'', ''Ninety-nine Degrees'', ''Don't Let Our Land be Lost Again!'' and ''Meizhen and Them''. Lin along with her husband wrote a book titled ''A Pictorial History of Chinese Architecture''. During this pursuit, Lin along with her husband went to thousands of ancient Chinese architectural sites. She conducted research and preserve China's architectural history. They lobbied hard to protect many of the old buildings in Beijing at a time when many parts of the city were being leveled by the municipal government. She also translated English works into Chinese.
Literature
The poet is only one of her identities. Her talent for poetry and song made her incredibly different. With an interest in writing poems, she met and made friends with lots of famous Chinese poets at that time. Her poem are warm and soft. Most of the poems are related to her personal emotions, such as insight from everyday life and love between friends, family, and romantic relationships. Unfortunately, most of her work destroyed in wars.
Few of her poems are recorded and preserved nowadays. It is no doubt that this is the regret of modern Chinese poetry. Some readers suggest that her poem is free-flowing, which is the same as her personality.
Lin Huiyin is well known for her many poems and essays, she was also one of the outstanding female representatives of the May Fourth Movement. Her essays are full of delicate feelings and are combined with the musical sense in the Chinese poetic tradition. Her novels are full of modern content, such as the most famous "You Are the April of This World". Similarly, Lin Huiyin and other writers also participated in the
May Fourth Movement
The May Fourth Movement was a Chinese cultural and anti-imperialist political movement which grew out of student protests in Beijing on May 4, 1919. Students gathered in front of Tiananmen to protest the Chinese government's weak response ...
. Lin Huiyin skillfully integrated the aesthetics of Tang poetry into the language and syntax of modernism and used the traditional literary practice of episodic narration to combat the gender determinants of these idioms. Lin Huiyin was fond of free love and ideal, but the free love under May Fourth turned into the tragic idealism in the social background, which exacerbated the pain of gender oppression.

In addition to architectural research, Lin Huiyin also engaged in literary creation. As a young girl, Lin Huiyin went abroad with her father to study in Europe. In England, Lin met
Xu Zhimo in England, who guided her to the road of literature. Therefore, Lin Huiyin set her foot on the road of literature. Xu Zhimo encouraged Lin Huiyin to write literature, especially poetry. Later, they organized activities, performed dramas, and experimented with more literary forms together. When
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Thakur (; anglicised as Rabindranath Tagore ; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengalis, Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer, and painter of the Bengal Renai ...
came to China, Lin and Xu worked together as translators, contacting the great poets of the world and learning poems from Tagore. She was more famous because she became the leading lady in Tagore's drama ''
Chitra''.
Because Lin Huiyin had a strong understanding of literature, her poems are rich in themes. During the transient years, in the quiet contemplation at night, Lin Huiyin has been used to expressing her feelings in poetry. Her poems often reveal the subtlety of human love, the silent beauty of nature, and the fortitude of life.
People Contributions

The Design of the Emblem of the New China
In late September 1949, Lin Huiyin, along with ten teachers from the architecture department, participated in the design of the emblem pattern. She devoted all her efforts and knowledge to this design. Their design proposal was selected as the emblem by the second session of the first National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in June 1950. In 1950, Lin Huiyin was appointed as a member of the Beijing Urban Planning Committee and engineer. In 1951, she was appointed as a member of the
People's Heroes Monument Construction Committee, undertaking the task of designing the decorative patterns and wreath reliefs of the monument's base. Later, people placed a small piece of tombstone with her designed wreath pattern draft in front of her own tomb at
Babaoshan to commemorate her.

The Design of the
People's Heroes Monument
In 1949, the Beijing Municipal Urban Planning Committee solicited design proposals for the monument nationwide. Lin Huiyin and Liang Sicheng unanimously advocated that the design of the People's Heroes Monument should be based on the form of a stele, with the inscription as the central theme. In May 1952, Lin Huiyin, who participated in the design work, was appointed as a member of the People's Heroes Monument Construction Committee (hereinafter referred to as the Monument Construction Committee). In the design work of the People's Heroes Monument, Lin Huiyin not only undertook the task of art design but also became the actual leader of the entire design team in many cases, proposing principled opinions on the overall shape and structure of the monument.
Lin Huiyin undertook the organizational work of the design team and personally designed a complete set of decorative patterns for the base and body of the monument, especially a series of wreath reliefs on the small Xumi stele base. From the overall planning to the decorative pattern patterns, Lin Huiyin carefully deliberated and studied each one. In terms of design style, Lin Huiyin advocated using the
Tang Dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...
style, which can best represent the characteristics of Chinese traditional culture, as the blueprint.
The Design of the Emblem at Northeastern University
In the late 1920s, Lin Huiyin, who was then an associate professor in the Department of Architecture at Northeastern University, participated in a competition for the design of the Northeastern University emblem initiated by
Zhang Xueliang
Zhang Xueliang ( zh, t=張學良; June 3, 1901 – October 15, 2001), also commonly known by his nickname "the Young Marshal", was a Chinese general who in 1928 succeeded his father Zhang Zuolin as the commander of the Northeastern Army. He is bes ...
with a prize. Lin Huiyin's design of the "White Mountain and Black Water" pattern won the top prize in the competition.

The Architectural Pattern of the Revolutionary Cemetery in
Babaoshan
In 1950, the People's Government of Beijing transformed the
Hu Guo Temple on Babaoshan into a cemetery, and in accordance with
Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai ( zh, s=周恩来, p=Zhōu Ēnlái, w=Chou1 Ên1-lai2; 5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976) was a Chinese statesman, diplomat, and revolutionary who served as the first Premier of the People's Republic of China from September 1954 unti ...
's opinion, the cemetery was named "Beijing Revolutionary Cemetery" as the burial place for revolutionary martyrs. The main architectural layout of the Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery was designed by the famous Chinese architect Lin Huiyin, divided into two parts: the tomb area and the columbarium. The cemetery is filled with green pines and cypresses, solemn and dignified, and is the final resting place for many revolutionary predecessors.
Posthumous Commemoration
Tomb of Lin Huiyin
Every Qingming Festival, the tomb of Lin Huiyin in Babaoshan, Beijing, is always filled with fresh flowers. The tomb of Lin Huiyin was designed by Liang Sicheng, adorned with a white marble wreath, and features the patterns from the Monument to the People's Heroes in Tiananmen Square, which was designed by Lin Huiyin herself. The tombstone is inscribed with the words "Architect Lin Huiyin's Tomb" in a unique font from the Architecture Society. During the Cultural Revolution, these words were destroyed by the Red Guards, turning it into a "tomb without words." The tomb has since been restored. However, the original trial engraving patterns retrieved from the construction site of the Monument to the People's Heroes cannot be repaired.
Character Evaluation
Overview
Lin Huiyin was an outstanding figure in the history of modern Chinese culture and also the first female architect in China. Together with her husband
Liang Sicheng
Liang Sicheng ( zh, c=梁思成; 20 April 1901 – 9 January 1972) was a Chinese architect and architectural historian, known as the father of modern Chinese architecture. His father, Liang Qichao, was one of the most prominent Chinese scholar ...
, she dedicated her life to her beloved Chinese architecture and art. They jointly pioneered the research system of ancient Chinese architecture and co-founded the architecture departments at
Northeastern University
Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...
and
Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University (THU) is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Constructio ...
. They were the pioneers and founders of the study system of Chinese architectural history. Lin Huiyin not only achieved remarkable success in the field of architecture but also had astonishing literary accomplishments. Her writings are unique, full of poetry without losing scientific rigor; her essays are full of spirituality, and her poetry is widely popular. She was committed throughout her life to the pursuit of beauty, had a profound analysis of the aesthetic theory system, and made outstanding achievements in the field of arts and crafts through innovation and creation.
"The life of Liang Sicheng and Lin Huiyin was never a life of 'killing time'; for them, there were never enough days." (Comment by philosopher
Jin Yuelin)
"An extraordinary first female architect of China, a brilliant scholar, she (Lin Huiyin) has such accomplishments in literature and art, and she is on par with Mr. Liang in architecture, making outstanding contributions together." (Comment by Tsinghua University Professor
Wu Liangyong)
Legacy

In October, 2010, as part of a revival of Lin Huiyin and her husband's life accomplishments, CCTV broadcast a six-hour, eight-episode documentary on the husband and wife.
The documentary is titled ''Liang Sicheng Lin Huiyin'' and was directed by
Hu Jingcao. Although Lin did not receive the recognition during her lifetime considering her gender, there is now a renewed revival of her legacy. It has been quoted of Lin Huiyin that "it is often only through the light given off by a man that we see the woman behind him, particularly so for young women in the arts who emerged from the republican era. But Lin Huiyin is an exception. In her, we see the reflection of many outstanding men of the time, but in fact it is she who adds extra color and shine to their images."
In 2018, the ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' wrote a belated obituary for Lin Huiyin and her husband.
File:Lin Huiyin.png, Young Lin Huiyin
File:Lin Huiyin and Lin Changmin.jpg, Lin Huiyin with her father Lin Changmin ()
File:Liang Sicheng and Lin Huiyin.jpg, Lin Huiyin and Liang Sicheng
File:Lin Huiyin & Liang Congjie 2.jpg, Lin Huiyin with her son Liang Congjie
File:Lin Tagore Xu.png, Lin Huiyin, Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Thakur (; anglicised as Rabindranath Tagore ; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengalis, Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer, and painter of the Bengal Renai ...
and Xu Zhimo
File:Liang Sicheng, Lin Huiyin, Zhou Peiyuan and others.jpg, Liang Sicheng, Lin Huiyin, Zhou Peiyuan and others
File:PRC_Emblem_Draft_Lin_Huiyin.jpg, The jade disc design of the National Emblem of the People's Republic of China
The National Emblem of the People's Republic of China is a national symbol of the China, People's Republic of China and contains in a red circle a representation of Tiananmen, Tiananmen Gate, the entrance gate to the Forbidden City chinese pa ...
proposed by Lin Huiyin
Notes
Further reading
*Fairbank, Wilma. ''Liang and Lin: Partners in Exploring China's Architectural Past''. University of Pennsylvania Press. 1994.
* Ch 9, “Chinese Friends,” John King Fairbank. ''Chinabound: A Fifty-Year Memoir''. New York: Harper & Row, 1982. ), pp. 104–113.
* Sicheng Liang, translated by Wilma Fairbank. ''A Pictorial History of Chinese Architecture: A Study of the Development of Its Structural System and the Evolution of Its Types.'' (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1984). Reprinted: Dover: 2005.
*Wong, Sidney (黄振翔). "Lin Huiyin (林徽因) and Liang Sicheng (梁思成) as Architectural Students at the University of Pennsylvania (1924-27)" ''Planning and Development'' Volume 23, No. 1, page 75–93, 2008.
*MCLC Resource Center. “Liang Sicheng, Lin Huiyin, Part 2,” July 5, 2017.
https://u.osu.edu/mclc/2017/07/05/liang-sicheng-lin-huiyin-part-2/.
*“Lin Huiyin.” Accessed October 24, 2021.
http://www.cdsndu.org/html_en/to_specialArticleContent_specialArticleID=8a28e6d84aed8358014af1977217030a.html.
*Zhu Tao. “To Search High and Low: Liang Sicheng, Lin Huiyin, and China’s Architectural Historiography, 1932–1946 by Zhu Tao,” n.d., 1.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lin, Huiyin
People from Fuzhou
1904 births
1955 deaths
20th-century Chinese women writers
20th-century Chinese architects
20th-century Chinese women artists
20th-century Chinese artists
Chinese women architects
Chinese women poets
Chinese architectural historians
20th-century Chinese poets
Boxer Indemnity Scholarship recipients
University of Pennsylvania School of Design alumni
Yale University alumni
David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University alumni
Academic staff of the National Southwestern Associated University
Writers from Fuzhou
Artists from Fuzhou
Poets from Fujian
Poets from Zhejiang
Educators from Fujian
Chinese women historians
20th-century deaths from tuberculosis
Tuberculosis deaths in China
Burials at Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery