Renovation Design of Changhua Street in Liwan District of Guangzhou from the perspective of Spatial Narrative

Currently, the intensification of urban homogenization and standardization has led to the loss of urban characteristics and memories, resulting in significant changes to urban landscapes. Under the guidance of policies for the renovation of "three old" areas and urban micro-updates, the research and practice of protecting and inheriting historical urban areas in Guangzhou have reached a new stage. However, driven by economic benefits and conservation efforts, the renovation of traditional historical urban spaces often emphasizes material transformation while neglecting the role of non-material elements. This has resulted in the disappearance of memory sites in historical districts and a disconnection in the city's historical context. Therefore, effectively protecting historical culture, continuing urban narratives, and telling compelling urban stories have become crucial research topics in the renovation of historical districts. This research synthesizes theoretical research and analyzes domestic and international cases of spatial narratives to summarize the application of spatial narrative theory in historical district studies. It constructs a design framework suitable for historical districts, including the organization of narrative elements, determination of narrative themes, and summarization of narrative structures. The research focuses on the historical district of "Changhua Street" in Guangzhou, which is an important part of the Xiguan historical area and the Xiguan water system. Employing the method of urban narrative space, the study comprehensively utilizes literature review, analysis of historical maps and images, and resident interviews to explore the narrative characteristics of the area. Research Findings reveal that the narrative thematic structure of Changhua Street in the Liwan District of Guangzhou has gradually formed and persisted over a thousand years of urban development. The narrative structure began to take shape in the late Qing Dynasty and stabilized during the Republic of China period. However, in modern times, there has been a noticeable narrative disconnection and ambiguity, leading to insufficient historical cultural perception. This is primarily reflected in the disappearance of early narrative scenes, the public's forgetfulness regarding the events behind the narrative spaces, and a decreased integration of the narrative network with citizens' lives. Based on spatial narrative theory, the research systematically organizes the district's narrative themes and clues, suggesting that the renovation of Changhua Street should rely on a narrative framework based on historical clues. Strategies such as optimizing narrative themes, enhancing narrative contexts, creating narrative scenes, and organizing narrative pathways are recommended to promote the renewal of Changhua Street and shape a unique urban space. The innovations of this study are as follows: First, it utilized ancient maps and historical documents as new research materials, systematically organizing and analyzing these data to provide an objective explanation of their sources and selection, thereby addressing the existing gaps in the organization of narrative resources. Second, by adopting a "narrative" perspective, the study focuses on non-material cultural elements such as emotions and memories, enriching the research on Guangzhou's historical districts and offering new insights for the preservation of local cultural heritage.