HIS gentle smile and cultivated manners make it hard to associate him with the young man of 10 years ago, the one who stood against a huge bulldozer with one hand while calling for support through a megaphone in the other to save an old house from being demolished.

For Wu Jiang, this was an unforgettable experience. When he was still a student majoring in architecture in Tongji University, he had already conducted research into the old building, a typical Jiangnan residential house. However, it faced the fate of being demolished for the sake of urban renovation in the early 1990s.

"At that time, I was only a teacher and what I said would not have been any help," Wu said. Having no other choice, Wu finally sought help from the media.

Since then Wu has been promoted to the post of deputy director of the Shanghai Urban Planning Administration Bureau. Speaking of his feeling about today's job, Wu said, "At least, I do not need to wrestle with bulldozers any more to communicate to people the importance of historical architecture protection."

Architectural bond

In Wu's office, four huge maps of Shanghai are hanging side by side just in front of his desk. "I always like to live in vigorous cities. Shanghai was just such a city, full of passion and challenges," he said.

Deeply influenced by his grandfather, one of the earliest Chinese to study architecture abroad, at the end of the 1920s, Wu developed a deep attachment to art from a young age.

This interest was not in tune with the social atmosphere of the "cultural revolution" (1966-76), however. At that time, if Western tastes were revealed in any architectural design or art work they would be criticized for their blind faith in foreign things. Yet Wu persisted, since learning about architecture was the only occupation that satisfied his pursuit of artistic excellence.

Therefore, in 1979 when it was time for Wu to go to university, he made a definite decision to learn about architecture. He still remembered the astonished expressions his first university teachers revealed when he stated firmly: "I would not be willing to change my field of study to any other major if I cannot gain admission to learn about architecture."

Seven years later, Wu became a lecturer himself, teaching architecture in Tongji University. He had also gained experience of recruiting students in person. "But sometimes, students would ask me: what is architecture for?" Wu said.

Change of direction

To become a designer was the ultimate dream for many of the architecture students. It was the same with Wu himself. He said, "the greatest pleasure in being an architect is derived from the process of design. It is, at the same time, a process of creation." However, life was often filled with uncertainties.

After completing his four-year study of architectural design, Wu did not find work as an architect. "I was too young to have a clear idea of my future profession at that age, but I did feel that what I had learnt in past years laid much emphasis on technology," Wu said.

Then he decided to learn architectural history and theory for his graduate studies. He started to investigate Western architectural history, as well as the issues of architectural protection in Shanghai. "By the time I finished my study for my doctoral degree, I realized that I would be engaged in research into architectural theory," Wu said with a smile.

Having spent almost 16 years teaching architecture, Wu experienced the dramatic changes in China's architectural landscape, especially in people's attitude towards the protection of historical architecture.

Passion to save

"Over the last decade, people have become increasingly rational, but previously, the work of architectural protection went through lots of bad times," Wu said.

In a society which underwent 10 years of political upheaval, it was hard for people to recognize the value of "old things", which were often taken as relics of feudalism or imperialism.

"With the gradual progress that has been made, intellectuals in China have ever more right to say that the social atmosphere for architectural protection is being changed," Wu said.

In spite of this, some barriers have still remained. For instance, the question of whether the Bund would qualify to apply for World Heritage status was part of a nationwide debate last year. "People were very enthusiastic about taking measures to protect the Summer Place, yet were unable to understand the cultural value of the Bund," Wu said.

As a teacher, all Wu could do was write articles "grumbling". Yet sometimes this behaviour seemed to be no more than impotent idealism. "Now, while working in the government, I can directly take part in the management work and have a chance to change some thoughts into reality, but this was often impossible in the academy," Wu said.

According to Wu, a healthy society should preserve its memory. The primary purpose of architectural protection was to maintain the continuity of cultural heritage. "People will feel lost when living in a disconnected state. History cannot be avoided," Wu said. "Once the bad memories are wiped out, people only have an incomplete memory."

Expectations

Whether working as a teacher or a government official, Wu never gave up his dream of architectural design. "I have such a desire to pursue this all the time, but in addition, I hope not to lose my academic sensibility," Wu said, considering the numerous meetings and large amount of administrative work he has to do.

Compared with his previous academic pursuits, Wu worried that his standards for evaluating certain questions were changing now. "Anyway, I am trying to adapt myself to this new job," he said.

Last December, Wu was invited to attend a meeting held in New York - called "The Future of New York". At that meeting, Wu found that some foreign experts even doubted the capability of China's government to practise successful urban planning.

In his speech, he mentioned the problem of rapid development was causing for Shanghai, for instance, the negative effects of high-density tall buildings on the city, while making some reflections on how to solve safety problems in big cities. "This was an interesting meeting that introduced aspects of China's urban planning to Western countries and to helping them to understand that our government not only realize the existence of such problems but has also taken legal measures to address them," Wu said.

Through his work, Wu had come to think that urbanization was not just about changing rural people into urban people, or about tall buildings and developed industry. "It is a continuous process of improvement which never ends," he said. "We should provide unlimited choices for people living in cities, since everyone has his own way to live."

Today, many tall buildings have been built in Shanghai, and China's architects were being presented with unprecedented opportunities to fashion exciting designs and make money from doing so.

"But people's attention to aesthetics and humanism is diminishing. There is a tendency to focus on producing quick results," Wu worried. "Will our later generations protect today's building? Will these buildings be worthy of protection many years from now?"