An Exploration of Applying Urban Catalyst Theory to Regeneration of Nanhuaxi Historic District in Guangzhou

Historic districts carry people's impressions of the city, bear witness to the development process of urban civilization, and are precious heritage of the city. At present, however, the fracture of historical memory, the destruction of architectural styles, the difficulty of cultural inheritance, the lack of social vitality, and the difficulty of adapting the backward environment to modern life have become common problems of historic districts in China. When large-scale development and adjustment are no longer seen as applicable to them, the regeneration of historic districts is challenged. The "urban catalyst" is a theory that originated in the West and then rapidly emerged in China, which aims to activate the original elements in the site without completely changing them, and then, through appropriate guidance, use the linkage reaction between the elements to drive the development and activate the vitality of the whole area. This concept offers strategic value in guiding the regeneration of historic districts. This thesis takes Nanhuaxi Historic District, the birthplace of Haizhu District, Guangzhou, as the research object and a typical example, to explore the principles and strategies of applying urban catalyst theory to this area, and form a complete methodology and certain urban design achievements. It aims to provide effective, concrete and feasible references for the regeneration of historic districts in various aspects, from tangible to intangible, and from early to late stages. The thesis consists of six chapters. Chapter 1 is the Introduction, which first elaborates the research background and related concepts, then summarizes the research status of urban catalyst theory at home and abroad, and then puts forward the objectives and significance of this research, and finally determines the research methods and framework. Chapter 2 is the Theoretical Study of "Urban Catalysts". Chapter 3 is the Case Study, which obtains the relevant application principles and methods through detailed analysis of catalytic regeneration cases in two historic districts, Hackesche Höfe, Berlin, and Dadaocheng, Taipei, providing a reference. Chapter 4 is the Methodology. Based on previous studies, combined with the understanding of the essence of catalysts and the relationship between urban catalytic methods and traditional conservation planning, the general principles of the catalyst theory applied to regeneration of historic districts, the potential of tangible elements to become catalyst carriers, and the characteristics of point, linear and surface catalysts are summarized. Then, the method content and key points of operation in the operating steps of "Catalysis Preparation", "Selecting and Activating Catalytic Elements" and "Controlling and Guiding the Catalysis" are elaborated. Chapter 5 and Chapter 6 discuss the application of the methodology to Nanhuaxi historic district. Chapter 5 is the site research. Using the value judgment factors and the catalytic characteristics in the methodology basis as a guide, this chapter follows the content in "Catalysis Preparation" as steps to conduct site analysis of Nanhuaxi, and makes the "Carrier Potential Map" as a tool to confirm the scope of the "Catalyst Design Area". Chapter 6 is the design and planning, which puts forward a series of catalytic strategies for Nanhuaxi, carries out various designs. Finally, in the conclusion, the main results and innovation points are summarized, and the limitations and prospects of the research are pointed out.