Three-sided courtyard

On the way to Yuan Li, I felt the breeze from the ocean and see endless rice farming areas that turn into flower fields during the fallow period. No wonder, this area was developed earlier than other areas in central Taiwan and was a major rice producing area.


My destination was Dong Li Chia Feng, a three-sided courtyard compound. An association rents this compound and runs a pension or a BED and Breakfast here. After Mr. Lo, the project manager, started to renovate this compound, he slowly found out the story of this compound and the family that owns it.

The land was reclaimed by Mr. Chen Yo from Fu Chien province in southern China. Since he didn’t have children, he gave the land to his workers. They were two brothers, Chen Yuan and Chen Shun, from Kuandong province. To appreciateChen Yo’s generosity and kindness, the two brother’s descendants still sweep Mr. Chen Yo’s tomb next to the compound. After accumulating their fortune by cultivating this land, the fourth generation of the Chen family in Taiwan built this three-sided courtyard compound about 130 years ago.

Like most landlords at that time, the Chen family employed construction workers and masters from main land China to build this courtyard. They built a kiln here to produce bricks and tiles and also taught some members of Chen family to participate in the construction. We can find features of typical Chinese architectural style, such as red bricks commonly used in southern China. Bilateral symmetry, hierarchy, enclosure, horizontal emphasis, and Feng Shui were also implied in this compound to indicate a higher social status at that time.

The main structure is a hall with two bays on each side. To keep bilateral symmetry, the extension of this compound starts with two wings (known as "guardian dragons" by the Chinese). This resulted in a U-shaped building, with a courtyard suitable for farm work.

The projected hierarchy is based on the strict placement of buildings in the compound. The hall with two bays faces the front of the property and is considered more important than wings facing the sides. The hall was served as a living room or for ancestral plaques. The two bays were reserved for elder members of the family. The two wings were for the junior members of the family.

With the increase of family members, more wings were built on both sides of the original three-sided courtyard. Central courtyard is considered more important than peripheral ones, the latter which are typically used as storage or servant's rooms or kitchens. At that time, the hall would be a shrine for ancestors and would be used during festivities. The two wings became the living room, the dining room, and the kitchen. In the kitchen, there were five stoves to serve food for more than 40 people. The inner courtyard would be reserved for family activities and the otter one would be for farm work.

The main structure and wings enclose open spaces within the courtyard compound. These enclosed spaces come into two forms: the open courtyards and the sky well. On the other hand, the empty spaces are surrounded by buildings connected with one another either directly or through verandas. These enclosures serve in temperature regulation and in venting the building complexes and provide privacy to members living in the wings.

Classical Chinese buildings, especially those of the wealthy are built with an emphasis on breadth and less on height. Chinese architecture stresses the visual impact of the width of the buildings. Instead of moving out the compound, new members lived in the extended wings on two sided. That shows the prosperity of the family. In the case of the Chen family, they built extra pairs of "wings" on both side.

Concepts from Feng Shui were present in the construction and layout of this compound. Orienting the structure with its back to elevated landscape and ensuring that there is water in the front. The pond in front of the outer courtyard is gone now but there is still a stream there.

While the time flies, the family becomes bigger and can’t live together anymore. Members started to move out and this compound was almost hidden in bushes. Only Chen Yo’s tomb is swept once a year. This old courtyard compound not only tells the story of the Chen family but also of most Taiwanese families.

After this compound turned into a B&B, its rebirth was seen. The owners moved back from the US and family members walk around here from time to time. I met one there during my stay. Today, visitors can not only stay overnight here but also wear old-fashioned clothes to make their own family videos. How many old family-owned courtyard are buried and waiting for rebirth?

source: http://folkbandb.com/fong/6.html