Shennan Road and the Modernization of Shenzhen Architecture

Shenzhen sets an example for rapid development of urban planning and construction. It was the starting point of the most massive city-construction movement in contemporary China. In less than 40 years, many representative urban space and buildings on the main east-west highway—-Shennan Road, have witnessed the formation of the banded multi-center structural layout and the miraculous expansion of the city. Many of those iconic buildings are designed by Hong Kong or foreign architects. With the continuous development of the length and width of Shennan road, its broad and prosperous image is not only a symbol of the fruits of reform and opening up in Shenzhen or even China, but also contains the growth history of Shenzhen’s architectural modernization. This paper reviews and summarizes the changes of the urban fabric and the design trend of representative buildings along with the Shennan Road in different periods by the historical research methods. Combined with the transfer path of the city center, this study analyzes what kind of unique role the street and buildings act as in the development of urban structure in Shenzhen, and expound what other urban functions and symbolic meaning they have. In the context of globalization, this article discusses how do the buildings designed by foreign architects change our city, the driven factors behind the phenomenon of the design trend change. This research can make a supplement to the history and theory of the modernization of contemporary Chinese architecture.