One City, Nine Towns

Shanghai is currently building nine communities that are "self-sufficient" satellite cities.  Residents can live, work and shop close to home, eliminating the need to travel to Shanghai.  The initiative is called "One City, Nine Towns."  Each town is modeled after a different European city.

On Wednesday, January 21, the MAK Center for Art and Architecture is presenting Heterotopias: Themed Environments in Shanghai and Los Angeles.  The event features Xiangning Li, a UFI fellow and urban theorist whose research focuses on the transplantation, application, adaptation and distortion of Western models in China.

Li’s research is aimed at evaluating the consequences of such “themed” urban environments. During his UFI residency in Los Angeles, he has found an abundance of examples for comparative analysis, from Disneyland’s Main Street USA to the canals of Venice, California. Examining both the positive and negative aspects of these themed environments, Li has identified lessons for Shanghai as it grows and expands.

Find out more about the event here.