
Ming-Song Shyu, Architectural History Scholar, Assistant Professor, Department of Architecture, Ming Chuan University
DH Café (No. 153, Section 3, Zhongshan North Road, Zhongshan District, Taipei City)
One lecture for $500, including special snacks (sandwiches, desserts, drinks), and 10% discount on event book purchases.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Bauhaus (1919-2019) and also marks the first anniversary of the death of Mr. Wang Dai. Three architects influenced by the Bao Haus in Taiwan, Wang Daei, Chen Chiquan and Zhang Zhaokang, each contributed in different ways to the development of modern architecture in Taiwan after the war. Even though time has passed, the ancients return today to take a closer look at the works they left behind, and the cultural depth of their work still amazes us. For this centenary, it is necessary to reflect on what cultural assets the ancients have left us behind. This series of four lectures is the beginning of what we intend to reflect deeply on. The theme of the lecture is “Theme 2: Taiwan Architecture and the Wide Space of Bauhaus-Chen Chi”.
In 2004, Chi-Kuan Chen received the National Award for Arts (Fine Arts category) from the National Culture and Arts Foundation, a testament to his artistic achievements. His architectural work likewise exudes the poetic ambiance and compositional finesse of landscape painting.
Born in Beijing, Chi-Kuan Chen was immersed in Chinese classics from a young age, and nurtured through exposure to poetry, calligraphy, and painting. He later studied architecture at Central University. In 1948, Chi-Kuan Chen pursued graduate studies at the University of Illinois, and eventually worked at Walter Gropius’s firm, The Architects Collaborative (TAC). In 1954, invited by I. M. Pei, Chi-Kuan Chen joined the campus planning for Tunghai University, forging a lasting connection with Taiwan and later becoming the founding chair of Tunghai's Department of Architecture.
Chi-Kuan Chen’s architectural philosophy draws from traditional layouts of Chinese courtyards and gardens, where heaven, earth, and humanity are in dynamic dialogue. More than the architectural form itself, he focused on landscape as a spatial concept—not merely plant design, but the integration of pictorial “negative space” from classical Chinese painting into environmental planning, cultivating an atmosphere of expressive simplicity.
For instance, the spatial composition along Tunghai’s Wenli Boulevard unfolds as a series of layered courtyards, with the boulevard serving as a mediating axis. This arrangement creates a rich sense of spatial depth while maintaining a relaxed, graceful atmosphere. Likewise, his Yangde Building (1982), with its crisp vertical sunshades, reduces the visual mass of the structure, allowing it to sit more lightly within its urban surroundings and softening the bustle of Roosevelt Road in Taipei.