Zhang Fuchang

Zhang is a professor and doctoral supervisor at Jiangnan University. He is vice president and a member of the expert committee of China Industrial Design Association， a member of the expert committee of China National Furniture Association， a member of the industrial design committee of China Artists Association， and a member of the Japanese Society for the Science of Design. Prof. Zhang has been engaged in industrial design education for over 50 years and is one of the pioneers of China’s industrial design education. He has published and co-published about 50 books including Chinese Folk Furniture and Indoor Furniture Design. His publications have won the Excellence Award of National Science and Technology Books， and first prize of Industrial Design of the Ministry of Light Industry， among others.

Encyclopedia of Chinese Traditional Furniture is the first work in China and elsewhere， that introduces the history and features of traditional furniture from the various regions and ethnic groups of China comprehensively. It contains beds， chairs and stools， tables， shelves， cabinets and cupboards， screens， lattice-style doors and windows， and other miscellaneous of the sort. There are four volumes in this calection with sufficient illustrative texts and about 10，000 photos and illustrations： General Introduction， Ethnic Minorities， Regional Characteristics， and Diversified Scenarios.

Encyclopedia of Chinese Traditional Furniture

Zhang Fuchang

Tsinghua University Press

January 2018

792.00 （CNY）

The Development of Chinese Traditional Furniture

Dimension

Since traditional furniture is created out of everyday needs and shaped by people's lifestyles and economic production， its ultimate dimensions are naturally determined with great care.

Because of its pragmatic and utility-first nature， Chinese traditional furniture provides the maximum level of comfort. Note that \"maximum\" is only a relative term in the context of design philosophy. More details with regards to this will be provided in a later chapter.

Traditional furniture in its early stage was not ideal in providing comfort for users， because it was born in the age of Natural Economy， where people were self-sufficient and lived off of agriculture. Against such a backdrop， the development of furniture was not conscious， but spontaneous. Furniture was a product of human's ability to remake nature and use tools. Furniture designers， craftsmen and manufacturers were an integrated whole， with no clear differentiation between them. As a result， furniture in its early days put utility before everything else， such as beauty and comfort. Also because of the integration of these three roles above， furniture has become increasingly comfortable and ergonomic. It is fair to say that traditional furniture is more experimental and practice-based than any other furniture.

As a template for all other furniture， traditional furniture played a critical role in determining the common dimensions of furniture， which focuses on three aspects： ergonomics， space， and personal habit.

The Selection of Materials

For traditional furniture， the selection of materials and the philosophy behind it are crucial to the development of furniture. Most of the materials used in traditional furniture are acquired locally with ease. Local availability is the fundamental principle for choosing materials. With economic development and technological progress， the scope of materials available for making modern furniture has widened greatly， but this basic principle has been inherited by traditional furniture. The design of modern furniture should be inspired by this principle and focus more on the reuse， regeneration， greenness， and local availability of materials. This should also be a focus in our effort to rejuvenate the Chinese furniture industry.

The Relationship between Furniture and Culture

Traditional furniture is rooted in traditional culture， hence the so-called \"Chinese factors\" in furniture. The proportion of its members， its structure， and details all carry aesthetic values that are unique to Chinese culture， with simplicity at the heart. This is something worth exploring in the pursuit of the culture behind various furniture. Aside from the visible aspects of furniture's Chinese elements， such as its appearances and materials， more importantly are the implications of culture and ideology for the philosophy of furniture design. Understanding the ideology is important for designing furniture with Chinese characteristics.

Traditional furniture is more nestled up against everyday life than any other type of furniture. It is originated from and shaped by the life of ordinary people. To serve people in their life and serve them better through constant upgrading is the tenet of traditional furniture. Traditional furniture is a name card for ordinary people's lifestyle and one that is pragmatic， natural， frugal， and simple. That's why traditional furniture is so widely accepted.

The Classification of Chinese Traditional Furniture

As a product of social and economic activities， furniture has been accompanying the progress of human civilization， mirroring the living conditions， technological capabilities， productivity levels， and traditional cultures of different ethnic groups from different regions at different times.

Archeological studies revealed that complete furniture systems already existed in ancient Egypt in 4000 BCE， which means that furniture has a history of at least 6，000 years. Chinese furniture dates back to 17th century BCE， or about 3，600 years ago when China was still ruled by the Shang Dynasty. The furniture back then already gained some importance in people's life.

A late Neolithic relic site （2500 BCE-1900 BCE） was discovered in Taosi Village， Xiangfen County， Shanxi， by the Institute of Archaeology， Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Among the funerary objects， wood rectangular plates and tables for holding food were identified for their marks and colored surfaces. So far， these are the earliest discovered wood furniture in China.

In 21st century BCE， China invented bronze smelting and casting techniques， which led to the advent of metal tools with an edge and made it possible to build wood furniture. As a result， wood furniture kept growing in number after the West Zhou Dynasty. During the Spring and Autumn Period， people still habitually sat on the floor. The types of furniture started to expand from those that already existed in the Shang Dynasty to include long tables， clothes racks， and hui （a woodpile set on the wall for placing clothes）. The furniture was mostly decorated with patterns such as taotie （a mythical beast）， dragons， phoenixes， clouds， waves， and scrolls. At that time， mortise-tenon structure was adopted for buildings. In 1979， square mortise grooves were discovered on two abandoned wood stands unearthed from a rock-tomb dating back to the late Spring and Autumn Period in Guixi， Jiangxi.

Literature on the history of Chinese furniture covers the whole period spanning from the Xia， Shang， and Zhou Dynasties to the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Some even go all the way to the transition period from the Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China. My research will follow the same chronological path， but will confine the research to folk furniture， which could be classified into furniture for weight bearing， furniture for storage， and furniture as tools.

Throughout the long history of Chinese furniture， all ethnic groups from around the country have created their own styles of folk furniture. Traditional furniture is closely linked to every aspect of people's life： clothing， eating， housing， travelling， study， and entertainment.

Though there are other systems of classification， Chinese traditional furniture is most commonly divided into the following seven categories.

Beds

Beds are for sleeping on. Those that have standing pillars， rails between them， and a canopy are called \"jiazi\" beds; those that are composed of a bed， a canopy enclosed within an alcove on a platform， and a footstool are called \"babu\" beds; those that have a low back and sides are called \"luohan\" couches; those without a back beside the body are called \"ta\"， or simply daybeds or low beds.

Chairs

Chairs are appliances for sitting， including：

1） chairs （back chair， armchair， round-backed chair， folding chair）; 2） benches （narrow bench， double bench， spring bench）; 3） wudeng， another term for stools （wudeng with horseback， folding wudeng）; 4） stools （porcelain stool， stone stool， sitting stool）; 5） thrones （only in courts and temples， instead of common households）.