Re-writing of Space by Drawing: A Case Study of the Interpretations of Jingqingzhai (Jingxinzhai) Drawing Archives

The construction of Chinese imperial gardens in the 18th century leaves not only a large number of valuable garden examples, but also a wealth of drawing archives. Given multiple structural correlations between drawings and actual spaces, this research selects the following 5 drawings of Jingqingzhai (Jingxinzhai) for comparative research: Map of Government Offices in the Imperial Palace drawn in 1669, Complete Map of Beijing in 1750, Map of Taiyechi in Xiyuan in 1759, Detailed Map of Additions to Jingqingzhai in Beihai Park in 1874, and Plan and Section of Ching-sin Tsai, Pei-hai Park, Peiping in 1936. At the information level, the research conducts a diachronic combing and comparison of landscape relationships, architectural layouts and individual dimensions of Jingqingzhai (Jingxinzhai) and surrounding sites; at the image level, the research restores the different perceptions of the same site by different drawers at different times through the interpretation of drawing techniques, image distortions, markings and other traces of drawing. The research further points out that behind the drawing differences in different technological contexts, there exists an implicit shift in the function of drawing, identity of drawers and overall structure of knowledge, and interprets the spatial design of Jingqingzhai (Jingxinzhai) in detail based on the comparison of drawings.