Architecture, town planning and branding strategies are increasingly being used on citywide scales. Nicolas Douay charts the transformation in Beijing: from Olympic symbols to the BOBO (Bourgeois-Bohme) experience.
In today's age of economic globalisation and urbanisation, cities are developing marketing strategies to both attract investors and certain demographic segments to boost their populations. However, such strategies have led to a form of standardisation of events, urban projects and architectural languages. The example of Bilbao and the Guggenheim museum can illustrate this dynamic, with the work of artechitect Frank Gehry transforming the image of an entire city.
Leading through icons
For the past decade, Beijing has followed a policy of modernisation in order to put the Chinese capital on the map, a process that culminated with the staging of the Olympic Games in 2008. Consequently, the stadium known as the the bird's nest and the aquatic centre known as the water cube became the enduring symbols of this international event. Along with the CCTV Tower by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas, these three new buildings symbolise the modernisation of Beijing and constitute the new branding of this emerging global city.
This spectacularisation of the urban cityscape has its positive effects, enforcing the myth of urban revival. However, there are some drawbacks to employing iconic buildings for branding a city. Firstly, we can question the originality and uniqueness of the projects and architectural languages that participate in urban revival projects. The Bilbao Museum looks remarkably similar to Gehry's Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles; the bird's nest would look just at home in Tokyo; and the water cube in Paris. Secondly, such development steals the limelight, shoving ongoing social and political debate between citizens and decision makers regarding urban planning and identity under the carpet.
The BOBO affect
Beyond the traditional strategy of urban branding, through the creation of iconic structures, an alternative strategy is developing in the Chinese capital. This strategy is one which has appeared almost organically. The Dashanzi Art District 798 is a good example of the so-called BOBO lifestyle in Beijing. By the early 1990s, when most factories had ceased to produce, and their abandoned buildings sought new tenants, a group of artists looking for cheap, ample workshop space away from downtown, set up in this area. The temporary move became permanent and in 2000 through word-of-mouth, artists and designers' started trickling in, attracted to the vast spaces. The abandoned factories with their Bauhaus-inspired style offered post-industrial chic studio space for artists. At that time, the spaces were decorated with outmoded Maoist slogans, adding an ironic touch of Mao kitsch to the place.
Between 2002 and 2007, there were many heated debates between governments, town planners and residents regarding the best methods for protecting the area from over-development. Today, the art district now constitutes the most important cultural center in the Chinese capital.
Nanluoguxiang
Beijing's subscription to the BOBO experience is also evident in its Nanluoguxiang hutong area. Nanluoguxiang boasted the typical hutong layout of the Yuan Dynasty (1271, 1368), comprising many small lanes. This district is one of the capital's oldest hutong areas and has been one of Beijing's 25 cultural and historical areas slated for preservation since 1990. During the last decade, this area has undergone much gentrification. In recent years as bars, cafes, restaurants and small handicraft shops have revived the neighbourhood with a modern and fashionable identity. The appearance of several art schools and institutions, including the prestigious Central Academy of Drama, have also added an artistic flavour to the district.
The area received a face-lift in early 2006.
In order to preserve its historical composition, vehicular traffic will be prohibited. Thus, the area will become one of the few pedestrian-only streets in Beijing. Today, the district plays home to a socially diverse crowd with both traditional and new inhabitants. Newcomers, perceived as having a higher social standing, are described as BOBO. In fact, in everyday life here, the old traditions interact with a thriving street culture promoted by an enlarged group of young designers. The blend of historical environs with a preponderance of cafes and shops means the area is evolving into a favourite spot for local hipsters, musicians, free-thinkers and tourists.
A balanced brand
The Nanluoguxiang hutong and Dashanzi areas have become new symbols of Beijing which are featured in the same light as the Forbidden City and the Olympic Stadium in travel books. It illustrates new practices of urban marketing in the Chinese capital with the emergence of a Bourgeois-Bohme (BOBO) experience that has reformulated the city-branding of Beijing. This revived image of Beijing illustrates the limits of flashy approaches to urban branding and highlights both the emergence and the shortcomings of glamour planning.
The realisation of great events or projects like the Olympic Games or the new Beijing CBD, cannot be seen as a panacea for urban planning. In order to attract new metropolitan elites, new practices must be attentive to local specificities by developing and promoting fresh alternative environments that will also offer a good quality of life and foster an original lifestyle. These new urban policies create micro identities within city limits and can be positively projected beyond. This evolution of urban marketing offers a relevant answer to the new questions and challenges posed by the era of increasing competition between global cities.
Nicolas Douay, PhD is a researcher at the French Centre for Research on Contemporary China.
