Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Best
Modern Architecture
Few cities in the world can match Beijing's extraordinary mix of building styles
- in the space of a few minutes' walking you can span an architectural narrative
of six centuries or more. Beijing's modern architecture, from the grandiose, So-
cialist Realist designs of the 1950s to the daring, cutting-edge structures going up
now, make for thrilling eye candy.
Post-1949
After the Communist Party's takeover of China in 1949, Soviet-inspired Socialist Realist
architecture was the big thing. The vast edifices that line Tiananmen Square are the prime
examples of this style of building.
1990s On
In the last decade, Beijing's city planners have looked West for inspiration and approved
some truly radical structures. Check out the CCTV Tower for an example of how Beijing
has embraced the architectural avant-garde.
Best Socialist Realist Architecture
Great Hall of the People
(
Click here
)
A hulking monster of a building that encapsulates
the lack of movement in China's political life over the last 60-odd years.
National Museum of China
(
Click here
)
Taking up most of the east side of Tiananmen
Square, this is another sombre monument to the power of the Communist Party.
Best Controversial Buildings
CCTV Building
(
Click here
)
You can't miss 'big underpants', a jaw-dropping structure
that looms over the CBD and seemingly defies gravity.
