Waterdrop Tile Project 滴水瓦

 Proposal: Liminal Tiles / Cultural Thresholds

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This project proposal engages the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden in Vancouver, Canada,  as both site and conceptual framework, focusing on the Waterdrop Tile (滴水瓦) as a critical architectural and symbolic element.

 

Positioned at the edge of the roofline, the drip tile operates as a liminal space—mediating between built form and environment, intention and contingency, human order and natural process.

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Through research, material investigation, and ceramic production, this project will critically re-examine the Waterdrop Tile (滴水瓦) and its broader function as both artifact and operative form. It seeks to extend traditional making practices into a contemporary context, positioning the tile as a site of translation between historical knowledge and present-day artistic inquiry.

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Situating this work within the wider context of intercultural communication, the project reflects on the historical and ongoing relationships between Canada and China, particularly as they are embodied in the cultural landscapes of Vancouver and Jiangnan (江南) vernacular architecture. Here, the tile emerges as a human-scale index of migration, continuity, and cultural transmission.