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Wang Da-hong ( zh, t=王大閎; 6 July 1917 – 28 May 2018) was a Chinese-born Taiwanese architect. Regarded as one of the pioneers of
modernist architecture Modern architecture, also called modernist architecture, or the modern movement, is an architectural architectural movement, movement and architectural style, style that was prominent in the 20th century, between the earlier Art Deco Architectu ...
in
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
, his architectural philosophy, whilst very modern in its application, was informed by both the
traditional Chinese garden The Chinese garden is a landscape garden style which has evolved over three thousand years. It includes both the vast gardens of the Chinese emperors and members of the imperial family, built for pleasure and to impress, and the more intimate g ...
and the
Siheyuan A ''siheyuan'' (; ɹ̩̂.xɤ̌.ɥɛ̂n is a traditional Chinese architectural style characterized by a courtyard enclosed by buildings on all four sides. This design was prevalent throughout China, notably in Beijing and rural Shanxi. Historic ...
– a historical type of family residence which comprises several dwellings around a courtyard.


Biography

Wang was born in
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
, but grew up in
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
and
Suzhou Suzhou is a major prefecture-level city in southern Jiangsu province, China. As part of the Yangtze Delta megalopolis, it is a major economic center and focal point of trade and commerce. Founded in 514 BC, Suzhou rapidly grew in size by the ...
. His father was
Wang Ch'ung-hui Wang Chonghui (; 10 October 1881 – 15 March 1958) was a prominent Chinese jurist, diplomat and politician who served the Republic of China from its foundation in 1912 until his death in 1958. He was a close associate of the republic's foundin ...
, a prominent Chinese jurist, diplomat and politician. During the early 1930s, he went to school in Switzerland. In 1936, he started studying engineering at
Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...
, before switching to architecture. In 1940, he enrolled at
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
, where he was taught by
Walter Gropius Walter Adolph Georg Gropius (; 18 May 1883 – 5 July 1969) was a German-born American architect and founder of the Bauhaus, Bauhaus School, who is widely regarded as one of the pioneering masters of modernist architecture. He was a founder of ...
. There, Wang was briefly a classmate of Huang Zuo-shen (aka Henry Huang), who would later become known as the founding director of The School of Architecture at
Tongji University Tongji University is a public university located in Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. Tongji is one of the ...
. Wang was also a classmate of both IM Pei and
Philip Johnson Philip Cortelyou Johnson (July 8, 1906 – January 25, 2005) was an American architect who designed modern and postmodern architecture. Among his best-known designs are his modernist Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut; the postmodern 550 ...
. Returning to Shanghai in 1947, he met up again with Huang Zuo-shen, and they both started working as part of the ''Five United'', a disparate group of Chinese architects who had mostly studied at British universities. The Society for Research and Preservation of Wang Da-hong's Architecture was founded in December 2013. Shyu Ming-song, secretary general of the society, says that Wang's single-story house (c.1953) on Jianguo South Road in Taipei “...was perhaps the first Western-style work with Chinese features to garner high acclaim in Taiwan”. Wang was also a fiction writer, with two novels published. In February 2014, he was awarded Taiwan's National Cultural Award. His notable works include the
Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall The National Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall is located in Xinyi District, Taipei, Taiwan. It is a memorial to the Republic of China's National Father, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, and was completed in 1972. The total building area covers in an open space o ...
and the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...
building in Taipei. In the early 1960s, Wang won the competition to design the
National Palace Museum The National Palace Museum, also known as Taipei Palace Museum, is a national museum headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan. Founded in Beijing in 1925, the museum was re-established in Shilin District, Shilin, Taipei, in 1965, later expanded with a S ...
, however his modernist design was ultimately rejected in favour of a more traditional approach by
Huang Baoyu Huang Baoyu (; 1918–2000) was a Taiwanese artist, calligrapher and architect, known for designing the National Palace Museum The National Palace Museum, also known as Taipei Palace Museum, is a national museum headquartered in Taipei, Tai ...
. Wang died on 28 May 2018 at the age of 100.


Selected works

*Wei Family residence in Taiwan (late 1940s) *Office of Taiwan Fisheries (late 1940s) *Central Bank, Guangzhou branch (late 1940s) *Yangde Avenue Japanese Ambassador to China (c.1953) *Architect's residence, Jianguo South Road, Taipei (c.1953) – demolished, later rebuilt as a replica in the Taipei Art Park (c.2014) *National Taiwan University Fisheries Museum (c.1954) *National Taiwan University Department of Chemistry (c.1957) *National Taiwan University Museum (c.1959) *Initial blueprint for the National Palace Museum (early c.1960s) – later rejected *Ma Gongzhong Oil Office Building (c.1960) *National Taiwan University First Student Activity Center (c.1961) *Taipei Prison ( Kameyama Prison ) General Office, Factory, Auditorium (c.1961) *National Taiwan University Chemical Engineering Museum (c.1961, c.1971 expansion east and west sides) *National Taiwan University Geological Science Museum (c.1962) *Freshwater Golf Club (c.1963) *National Taiwan University Law School Library (c.1963) *Lin Yutang house (c.1963) *Hong-Lu Apartments, Jinan Road, Taipei (c.1964) *Asian Cement Building (c.1966) *National Taiwan University girls ninth dormitory (c.1966) *Monument to the Moon Conquest (c.1969) – not constructed *National Taiwan University Returnees Scholars (c.1970, Changxing Street, No. 60, No. 62) *Good House (c.1970) *Office of the Ministry of Education of the Republic of China (c.1971) *Songshan Airport expansion (c.1971, co-design) *Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, Taipei (16 May c.1972) *National Taiwan University Comprehensive Classroom and Comprehensive Auditorium (c.1972) *Honglin Building (c.1972) *Republic of China (ROC) Ministry of Foreign Affairs building, Taipei (c.1972) *Institute of Biochemistry, Central Research Institute (completed in the first phase 1974, completed in Phase II, 1977, at the University of Taiwan ) *Institute of Botany, Academia Sinica Li Xianwen Memorial Hall (c.1975) *Central Research Institute Three People's Institute Building (c.1976) *National Taiwan University Agricultural Museum (c.1976) *Zhang Qunying (in c.1977, now Zhang Qun's former residence *Central Institute of Mathematics Institute Building (c.1977) *Qingling Industrial Research Center Building (c.1977, located in Taiwan University ) *Tianyu Apartment (c.1979) *Renaissance East Gate Christian Church Presbyterian Church (c.1980) *Institute of Information Science, Central Research Institute (c.1980) *Dongwu University City campus cast autumn building (c.1981) *Central Research Institute European and American Joint Building (c.1982) *Central Research Institute of Historical Relics (c.1984) *Institute of Molecular Biology, Central Research Institute (c.1985) *Central Research Institute Student Hostel (c.1987) *National Taiwan University Health Care and Medical Center (c.1987) *Soochow University Sungai Campus School (c.1989) *Chen Xiayu House (c.1995)


Publications

*''Du Lian-kue'' (1977, novel) by Wang Da-hong – published in Chinese *''Phantasmagoria'' (2013, novel) by Wang Da-hong – published in English, later translated into Chinese


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wang, Da-hong 1917 births 2018 deaths 20th-century Chinese architects Taiwanese men centenarians Harvard University alumni Taiwanese architects Chinese men centenarians Chinese emigrants to Taiwan People from Beijing