The Caoyangxincun neighborhood is defined by rows of modest, two-story brick houses with red-tiled roofs and communal courtyards. Built in nineteen fifty-one, this was the first worker residential district constructed by the new government…
Socialist Workers Village Walk
This stroll through Caoyang New Village, a historic 1950s Soviet-style planned community built for Shanghai's model workers, offers a fascinating look at mid-century socialist urban planning and the neighborhood's enduring community spirit.
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1. Caoyangxincun Cun Embassy
2. Caoyang Yicun
The brick walls of Caoyang Yicun are painted a pale, faded yellow, marked by rows of wooden window frames and small, shared balconies that crowd the facade. Built in nineteen fifty-two, this neighborhood served as the first experimental…
3. Caoyang Park
Caoyang Park sits at the heart of the first model workers' village built in nineteen fifty-one. Its signature feature is a winding, man-made canal that carves through the landscape, lined with weeping willows and stone bridges meant to…
4. Shanghai Putuo Cultural Center
The Shanghai Putuo Cultural Center features a distinct facade of overlapping, angular glass panels that shift in color depending on the light. Architects designed this structure to serve as a hub for local art exhibitions, theater…
5. Caoyang Shopping Mall
The Caoyang Shopping Mall wears a faded, concrete facade that marks it as a relic of the nineteen fifties. This structure anchors the Caoyang New Village, China’s first planned residential district built for the working class. When it…
6. Caoyang Cinema
The brick facade of Caoyang Cinema wears a tall, vertical sign featuring the character for film, marking the first movie house built in China after nineteen forty-nine. Designed to serve the workers of the model Caoyang New Village nearby,…