Contemporary Shanghai is the epicenter of outstanding economic, social and cultural changes, resulting in the raise of new questions about demographic growth, environmental sustainability, urban security and cultural identity. These issues coalesced in the development of extensive, accelerated and sometimes contradictory architectural transformations, also driven by increasing resource availability and the necessity for rapid densification in the central areas of the city, which led to the progressive loss of significant historical traces.
By exploring the ongoing evolution of some strategic areas - the Lilong quartiers, the Bund, the system of public spaces facing the water - and the experiences of selected architects - Atelier Deshaus, Atelier Liu Yuyang Architects and Original Design Studio -, the book analyses the fields, the reasons and the modalities of these transformations, and outlines the raise of a counter-trend emerging from the most recent interventions on both existing and new buildings, which are experimenting with new relationships with the local history, cultural heritage and urban identity.

Matteo Moscatelli holds a Ph.D. in Architecture, Urban Design, Conservation of Housing and Landscape, and is Professor in Architectural Design at Politecnico di Milano, where in 2018 he was engaged in a research project promoted within the UNESCO Chair in Architectural Preservation and Planning in World Heritage Cities, aimed at exploring the urban policies and practices dedicated to the preservation of architectural heritage in Shanghai.