Jump to content

Draft:Chinese Nationality Room

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Overview

[edit]

The Chinese Nationality Room, formerly known as the China Memorial Room, is the 36th room on the first floor of the Cathedral of Learning at the University of Pittsburgh. In 1929, the Chinese Students Club of Greater Pittsburgh became interested in national memorial classrooms at Pitt and approached the Chancellor, asking to reserve a room in the common halls to be used as a Chinese Memorial Room.[1] There, the plans for what would become the Chinese Nationality Room began. The room was designed to be “typically Chinese, with the added comforts of a modern classroom”.2 The original designer of the room was Teng-Kwei, a Chinese student of the Fine Arts School at Harvard, and the room’s leading architect was Henry Killam Murphy, an American with significant knowledge of Chinese architecture.3

The room was dedicated on October 6, 1939, to Confucious, the Chinese philosopher. At least one-third of the entire Chinese population in Western Pennsylvania would attend the dedication ceremony,4 and prior to the dedication, the traditional Chinese ceremony of TaLi was held. The TaLi comprised an exchange of gifts which marked the room's presentation. A Pitt News article from the days prior to the dedication described the ceremony as such; “the room will first be donated by the University and accepted by the Chinese committee and then donated by the committee and accepted by the University.”5

The Chinese Nationality Room is used in a variety of ways, both academic and cultural. The classroom holds up to fifteen students and is used for a variety of smaller, seminar classes. The room is also used for cultural events, such as performances, storytelling, discussions, and even opportunities to try on traditional Chinese clothing and makeup; a professional Chinese Kun Opera group performance was recently held.6 The room also hosts holiday open houses where it is decorated for the holiday season and visitors are invited to participate in traditional Chinese crafts and cultural demonstrations to learn more about the ethnic communities and traditions of China.7 The Chinese Heritage Room Committee also employs the room to hold an event where they discuss the history of early Chinatown in Pittsburgh and the contributions of Chinese immigrants to the area of Southwest Pennsylvania.8

History and Development of the Room (1926-39)

[edit]

The Nationality Classrooms project at the University of Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Learning began in 1926.10 Overseen by Chancellor John G. Bowman (1921-45),11 the project was undertaken with the intent of broadening students’ understanding and awareness of cultural diversity, and to give a voice to many minority ethnocultural communities within the Greater Pittsburgh Area.12 Chairman of the Chinese Committee John Tsui described the Nationality Rooms as “expressions of…human values”,13 including “honesty, order, courage, kindness, wonder, love for growing things, and gladness to live…the kind of education which the faculty wants at the University".14

The Chinese Memorial Room’s development began in 1929. The University had not included space for a Chinese room, due to the relatively small population of Chinese residents in the Greater Pittsburgh Area.15 A small group of Pitt students of Chinese descent wrote to the University to request the allocation of space and preliminary funds to construct a Chinese room.16 They were directed to Dr. C. C. Wu, the Chinese ambassador to Washington; Dr. Wu helped them forward a request for $10,000 in gold from the Chinese National Government in service of the room’s construction.17 Then-Minister of Finance T.V. Soong unofficially approved it “in recognition of what American education has meant to China”.18

Later that year, those students formed a more formal committee composed of academics from the surrounding area.19 It contained Chinese students from Pitt as well as nearby Duquesne University, Pennsylvania College for Women, Carnegie Institute of Technology, and various representatives from the Chinese colony in the city.20 Dr. C.F. Lai, a graduate student studying chemistry at Pitt, served as its first chairman.21

When the Japanese invaded Chinese-controlled Manchuria in 1931, the outbreak of war forced the Ministry to delay the release of the funds indefinitely.22 Because the Committee had expected the promised donation, the Chinese Memorial Room’s construction was already well underway by the time it became clear that the money needed to continue paying for it would not be coming anytime soon.23 Soong acknowledged the “embarrassing position”24 his Ministry had left the Committee in in a 1931 letter: “Your guests all come to the dinner party, but your cook suddenly calls a strike” he stated apologetically.25

The Committee realized that other avenues of revenue would be required, and began to work to raise money and acquire necessary resources while the Chinese government remained occupied with the war.26 The Committee expanded over the following five years, with various University faculty, local Chinese scholars, and various other professionals joining the cause.27 They were able to raise thousands of dollars from sympathetic donors in the U.S. during the Great Depression.28

Among the Committee’s most integral members during this period were Ruth Crawford Mitchell, John H. Tsui, Teng-Kwei, and Nellie Quil Yot.29 Mitchell, a member of the University’s administrative staff, held the title of Chairman of the International Group Rooms of the University of Pittsburgh.30 Serving as an advisor for the Chinese Memorial Room Committee, she was in constant correspondence with the room’s benefactors and performed a wide variety of tasks in the service of the room. These included maintaining relationships and communicating with donors, acquiring artifacts and setting up contracts with architectural and construction firms, coordinating fundraising efforts, and relaying important information to the Chinese Committee.31

John H. Tsui, a graduate-level engineering student at the University, served as the second Chairman of the Chinese Committee after Dr. C. F. Lai departed to China in 1930.32 Tsui, disappointed with the Committee’s lack of financial support and the room’s slow development at a time when many of the other Nationality Rooms had already been completed, helped catalyze a plethora of domestic fundraising campaigns from 1931-35.33 By 1935, under Tsui’s leadership, the Committee had raised $4,715.77, ensuring that the project was able to survive in lieu of the Chinese government’s promised donation.34 Tsui’s appeals to Chinese nationalism were also instrumental in convincing key government figures, namely Dr. Wu’s successor Alfred Sze, to aid his cause when the Great Depression rendered the acquisition of further funds impossible on the domestic front.35 In a 1934 letter to Sze, Tsui stated that the room was “no longer a local but a national affair. It reflects not only the Chinese people of Pittsburgh but the Chinese race as a whole”,36 and went on to quote a colleague who had stated that the unfinished room represented “an embarrassment for all Chinese visiting Pittsburgh and its great University”.37

The Memorial Room’s architecture was designed by Teng-Kwei.38 Kwei, a Chinese-born artist, was educated at the Harvard School of Fine Arts.39 He was recruited to the Chinese Memorial Room project as its lead architect; in 1930, he published the room’s earliest design, modeled on the halls of the Tai-Wah Palace of Peiping.40 He was directly involved with the stylization, material acquisition, and construction oversight for the majority of the room’s interior, much of which is still present today.41 His work on the room’s ornate ceiling displaying traditional Chinese motifs and characters is among his most significant contributions.42 Kwei also helped raise significant amounts of money for the room through his Garden Lectures;43 immersive, educational talks about the importance of nature in Chinese culture and architecture, hosted in the spacious gardens of Committee donor Roy A. Hunt.44

Nellie Quil Yot, the Committee’s treasurer, also raised a significant amount of money for the cause during fundraising campaigns across the Northeastern United States between 1933 and 1934.45 Mrs. Yot traveled to Philadelphia, New York City, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, and Detroit over a three-month period, seeking to solicit funds from Chinese communities.46 Despite the devastating effects the Great Depression had left on people throughout the nation, she remained confident in the Chinese people’s “love in good causes and generous giving”.47 Endorsed by prominent Chinese organizations like the On Leong Association, the Chinese Merchants’ Association, the Hip Sing Association, the Kuo Ming Tang, and the Chinese Benevolent Association,48 she was able to raise roughly $1,877.25 from her efforts.49


In 1934, Yot was able to recruit Dr. T. L. Yuan, Director of the National Library of Peiping, to assist in the cause.50 Yuan was able to help get the new Minister of Finance and close personal friend, Dr. H. H. Kung, to officially agree to send the initially promised $10,000 in a signed document in 1933.51 However, the funds were still not actually delivered until mid-1935 when Dr. Alfred Sze received the check and sent it directly to the University, and allowing the committee to officially reach their goal of campaigning for $10,000.52 Fundraising slowed down in the following years as focus shifted entirely to the construction process.53

On August 3, 1939, it was addressed that the dedication day of the Chinese Nationality Room may be on October 6, 1939.54 Official invitations were sent out later in August 21.55 On the day of the dedication, Mr. Tsui gave a speech commemorating the room, contributors, and the actors involved.56 The Ambassador, in this ceremony, had also given a speech commemorating the relations between Americans and the Chinese, highlighting The history of both the U.S. and Chinese and its international relations.57 Since the dedication of the Nationality Room, celebrating its opening, it has been used as a classroom and as a special event room.

Funding and Donors

[edit]

In 1928 the Chinese Committee materialized and cooperated with Dr. C. C. Wu to appeal for funding from the Chinese National Government. Though, the $10,000 gift promised by Nanking for the construction of the Chinese Memorial Room was only partially received by 1935.58 The Chinese Committee estimated furniture and material costs to fall around $5,000,59 excluding travel and labor costs of those involved with direct construction. As Teng-Kwei and the Committee were determined to begin construction by the summer of 1931,60 the team began campaigning to collect money to fund the project. Thus, in June of that same year, Mrs. Mitchell proposed a budget of $1,000 to commence work on the Chinese Memorial Room.61

In July of 1931, Teng-Kwei and several members of the Chinese Committee lectured on traditional Chinese gardening at the home of the Hung family–who were formally connected to the American Aluminum Company–as a benefit event.62 As previously discussed, Mrs. Yot’s campaign in major cities between 1933 and 1934 contributed significantly to the project’s funds. Mrs. Yot was responsible for traveling to Chicago, Detroit, Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Atlantic City. Between 1933 and 1934 Mrs. Yot raised $1,623.50 from Chicago and Detroit, $591.50 from Boston, $981.53 in New York, and $128.50 from Philadelphia and Atlantic City.63 By 1933, donations amounted to over $3,000.64 More than $4,715 were collected by the beginning of 1935, with contributions from R. B. Mellon, T. V. Soong, Chinese organizations and local communities in Pittsburgh and other cities as mentioned before.65 In July of 1935, a check of $5,000 was delivered from Dr. Alfred S. K. Sze that came from China.66 This completed the desired $10,000 fund for the Chinese Nationality Room, marking the Chinese Committee as the first of the seventeen existing nationality room committees to reach their quota.

Even after reaching the goal of $10,000, funding for the Chinese Nationality room continued, but sparsely as construction would begin soon, and the money would transfer to the job. On October 13, 1937, $250 was appropriated to fund the procurement of a red lacquer door.67 In 1938, Letters from Mrs. Mitchell to Mr. Fung revealed that about $12000 were raised in total for the nationality room, exceeding the desired $10000 that had been originally set.68 This includes the donations from different parts of the U.S, the donations from Pittsburgh and other chinese organizations in the U.S, and checks given by China and R.B. Mellon. Later in July, Mrs. Yot asked Mrs. Mitchell to consider inviting former ROC Colonel Thomas Tchou to give a lecture at the university, estimating that it may cost $200 - $250 to have the Colonel come and give the lecture.69 By April 24, 1939, the collected money was officially turned over to the University to pay for the construction of the Nationality room, officially completing a funding campaign that lasted nearly a decade since it began in 1931.70 On September 19, Mrs. Mitchell asked to use $200 promised by the Chinese Benevolent Association to pay for a number of translated Chinese poems, stories, and songs to be stored in the room.71

Architectural Style and Influences

[edit]

The Chinese Memorial Room, designed to serve as a small seminar classroom, displays a unique blend of traditional Chinese and Western craftsmanship. As emphasized by the Chinese Room Committee, it was important to construct a room based on the designs of a Chinese artist “to encapsulate the Chinese spirit of the room”73 while also ensuring the longevity of each manufactured piece of furniture or decoration that defined the room’s uniquely Chinese character. Inspired by the Tai-Wah Palace in Peiping,74 Teng-Kwei’s design intended to integrate both the simplicity of traditional Chinese windows, walls, and floors with a ceiling “decorated with a brilliantly colored dragon design, characteristic of Chinese national palace ornaments. Chinese embroideries and scrolls, written by noted Chinese scholars, [were] hung on the walls.”75 The teakwood tables and chairs, crafted by American companies like Shaw Furniture Company, A. Kimbel & Son, Inc., and Ossit Church Furniture Company, combine Chinese architectural design with American manufacturing techniques.

Key Elements, Features, and Symbolism

[edit]

From early stages in the designing process around 1931,77 Mrs. Mitchell and the Chinese Committee debated whether the wooden furniture would be manufactured in the United States or China, considering the potential for cracking in teakwood furniture manufactured in China due to steam heating used in the Cathedral of Learning.78 A consensus decided upon manufacturing the pieces in the US, declaring that the students’ chairs would be made with traditional teak.79 Shaw Furniture Company, experienced in crafting wood pieces for Yale University, Dartmouth, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology,80 took great care in manufacturing and properly treating the student chairs. A. Kimball and Son, Inc., based in New York, assumed responsibility for crafting the central moon table, professor's chair, and side table.81 Teng-Kwei and the Chinese Committee worked alongside Jan Porel, head designer of the firm and expert of Chinese architecture. Having experience with manufacturing projects in Shanghai, Porel and his firm were confident in their contribution of quality products, using dark-stained vermilion teakwood as a tribute to Chinese tradition. Despite initial challenges, including structural failures82 and design discrepancies of furniture produced by both companies, all pieces were eventually repaired and designed to meet the Committee’s expectations.83

Integrating symbols into the Chinese Room that reflect Chinese history, philosophy, and virtues was of great priority to Teng-Kwei and the Committee. Visitors enter through a red-lacquered door framed by sandstone with carvings of symbols representing good luck and prosperity, long life and happiness, and characters reading “Humbleness of heart, solidity of virtue.”84 Walls feature historical paintings and classical quotations, most of which were gifts and phrases selected by Chinese intellectuals.85 On the left side of the room on dark green slate is a painting of Confucius, the Chinese philosopher to whom the room was dedicated in 1939. The Confucius painting is surrounded with scripts of his teachings in Chinese characters that translate as “Read the works of the sages, express them through noble deeds.”86

The ceiling most intricately reflects a visual production of Chinese motifs. By July of 1931, forty painted pine tiles of blue, gold, green, and red accents covered the ceiling. Designed by Teng-Kwei, the square tiles are symbolic of one’s association with divinity and adherence to the eight Chinese virtues: filial piety, brotherhood, faithfulness, sincerity, courtesy, integrity, service, and modesty.87 Dragons, peonies, and the phoenix represent wisdom, the most powerful birds, and most divine flowers, respectively.88 A golden dragon positioned in the ceiling’s center represents China itself.89 The dragon is surrounded by pictorials of earth elements and the four seasons.90 In 1934, the dragon was debated among the Committee concerning its political weight. As Tsui expressed in correspondence with Porel, the concern was that the symbol was “merely a gesture for party political propaganda purposes. The Committee [felt] that the dragon was symbolic of the old Manchu Regime, and, therefore, it [was] not representative of the several thousand years of Chinese culture,”91 but it remains.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ [1]