User:Yifeng Qi/sandbox

Characteristics
Lingnan refers to a specific region in south China, possessing a great number of amazing geometric and humanistic characteristics. Lingnan architecture, being a part of Lingnan culture, is mainly located in the South China including the provinces of Guangdong, Guangxi, Hunan and Jiangxi. Lingnan architecture is a regional architectural style that mixes the architectural elements in South Asian countries with the local, vernacular architecture to accommodate the humid and hot climate typical in subtropical areas. Typical Lingnan architecture is a large but closed space surrounded by corridors and walls. On the one hand, the closed spaces provide people not only with privacy, but also strong connections between houses, courtyards, and decorations with people's life. On the other hand, the groups of houses are not built in high density, giving people good ventilated living conditions.

One of the most important characteristics of Lingnan architecture is that the architecture harmonizes very well with nature. Rather than making efforts to design delicate but artificial decorations, Lingnan architects pay more attention to the integration of the architecture with the natural environment. In fact, Lingnan architecture is mainly surrounded by trees and flowers, which also indicates that horticulture has been part of Lingnan architecture since it was invented. Generally speaking, the whole arrangement of the buildings is based on the owner's vision of a delightful lifestyle close to nature.

Comparison of Lingnan architecture with siheyuan
Lingnan architecture, being one of the typical architectures in the south part of China, is quite different from siheyuan, a type of architecture mostly found in north China. Because of the difference in weather between north and south China, although it is common to see wood and paint used for the Lingnan architecture, it is not the case for siheyuan--most of the siheyuans are built out of bricks and rocks to deal with the cold and long winter in north China. Furthermore, the windows in buildings in Lingnan architecture are single layered and larger, whereas they are double layered and much smaller in siheyuans. Such difference in windows is also the result of the weather difference. In terms of layout, Lingnan architecture varies depending on the site and orientation, whereas siheyuan highlights its central axis, which is the area that exists in the middle of the buildings.