Bamboo: Structure and Culture

Bamboo has been used as a material since the beginning of human civilization. Because its irregular form, inhomogeneous structure bamboo is neglected in the industrial society and regarded as a "material for poor people".Through the industrialization bamboo can be processed and fabricated into standard industrial products but loses also its structural advantages and the connection to its traditional bamboo culture. Instead of industrialization, modernization should be the solution for the problem. Four principles of design with bamboo will show how bamboo's structural and cultural dimensions can be taken into account for overriding the difficulties between bamboo and designer.With more appropriate bamboo designs used in people's daily life, bamboo can build its new cultural identity in the industrial society which represents a harmony of its inner structural and cultural dimensions and the outer industrial context. This study on bamboo also wants to give an example of how design can contribute to a sustainable development in which not only technology and economics, but also environment, culture and tradition are all considered thoroughly.