The courtyard dwelling tradition in East and West: an overview

The paper aims to give a comparative overview of the various transformations the courtyard building type underwent in Mediterranean urban history and in Chinese culture, thus highlighting its resilience to different needs and conditions. The paper will briefly present, on one hand, the evolution of the courtyard dwelling, from the antique atrium and patio house, to the renaissance palace, up to the late 19th century courtyard perimeter block, discussing in parallel the building's relationship with the block and the street. On the other hand, it will examine the courtyard building type as a typical spatial model of traditional residential building in China, showing its long rooted symbolism in the Magic Square and its traditional cultural value both as city and countryside dwelling. In this excursus the close relationship between "siheyuan" building and "hutong", that is between courtyard building and street pattern, will be also mentioned, thus making evident the lack of dependence for Chinese house from the public space of the street. The traditional Chinese house structured on the principle of courtyards, one after another, was in fact facing and defining the street through its blank walls. Notwithstanding significant urban cultural differences between East and West, the paper will show that the long lasting tradition of the courtyard building type, in both cultures, was based on the fact that it was broadly appreciated as a remarkably resilient building type, both in environmental, functional and social terms. Finally, drawing on recent research projects investigating on courtyard buildings' energy performance -- by exploring the effects of the transitional spaces (courtyards, atrium) in different climates, through modelling and simulations -- the paper will give also scientific evidence of the physical and social resilience of this building type, thus showing its usefulness for contemporary society too.