The Jiangnan area of China spans the lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. The area has a unique landscape with many bridges and flowing rivers, white walls and black tiles, and houses built along the shore. Jiangnan ancient towns, gardens, and residential buildings bear the influence of ancient Chinese culture and local people's lifestyle. Zhou Yixin has more.

In Tongli Ancient Town in Suzhou, there is an exquisite garden. Tuisi Garden, located in this Jiangnan water town, specializes in waterscapes. It focuses on using waterscapes, trees, flowers and stones to create a simple, elegant and natural artistic environment.

ZHOU YIXIN Suzhou, Jiangsu Province "All the buildings here are built around the pond in the middle, reflecting the ethereal and poetic style of the overall design of the garden. The exquisiteness and freehand aesthetics of Jiangnan architecture are reflected here."

There is a close relationship between Jiangnan garden aesthetics and ancient Chinese landscape paintings. A large number of literati and painters in the Tang and Song Dynasties participated in the gardening at that time, integrated their own aesthetic ideas into gardening, and transplanted the artistic conception of landscape paintings into the creation of gardens. The gardens of the Ming and Qing Dynasties were in the same style as the Song Dynasty, leaving many classic gardens that have been preserved to this day.

ZHU GUANGYA Professor School of Architecture, Southeast University "After the Song Dynasty, especially after the Southern Song Dynasty, the Jiangnan area gradually became the cultural center of the country, and Jiangnan also produced many famous schools of painting. After the Song and Yuan Dynasties, literati paintings became more prosperous. Literati paintings do not use too many colors; their use of black, white and gray tones directly affected the architectural aesthetics of Jiangnan. This new aesthetic concept formed the elegant style of Jiangnan architecture. Influenced by this and the beautiful natural environment of Jiangnan, designers used ordinary white walls and black tiles to create an artistic conception as beautiful as landscape paintings."

In addition to the gardens and houses built by dignitaries and wealthy families in ancient times, in many ancient towns in Jiangnan, we can see traditional folk houses with a long history. Many of these houses are built along the water and represent the lifestyle of the Jiangnan water towns where "everyone lives by the river." The Jiangnan area has low terrain and dense water networks; so, many buildings are built near the water. That not only benefits people's lives but also facilitates waterway transportation.

Since the Southern Song Dynasty, commercial trade in the Jiangnan region has become increasingly developed, and prosperous commodity exchanges have led to the gradual emergence of many market towns. Xitang Ancient Town is one of them.

HAN JINMEI Cultural consultant Xitang Tourism and Leisure Resort Management Committee "In ancient times, nearby farmers came to the town by boat, navigating these rivers. Some of the people doing small business in the town were also farmers. The convenience of waterway transportation caused surrounding residents to gather here. Then, a market town was formed during the Tang and Song Dynasties. Therefore, farming culture and civilian culture had a profound impact on the ancient town of Xitang."

If the ordinary houses in Jiangnan embody the lifestyle of the region, then the houses of the wealthy embody the exquisiteness of Jiangnan architecture. Zhang Shiming's old house, in Huzhou, Zhejiang Province, retains the typical Jiangnan architectural pattern. Each courtyard is independent, but connected by corridors. The most distinctive feature are the thousands of stone, wood and brick carvings in the house, which embody the high level of ancient Chinese carving art and the exquisiteness of Jiangnan architecture. Zhou Yixin, CGTN, Jiangsu and Zhejiang Provinces.