近百年来，中国古典式样新建筑始终在同时期的中国建造中占有一席之地，却因其“旧形式”和“新材料”的矛盾关系被视作中国建筑现代化转型的消极因素。项目对这组关系的再研究，以发掘这类建筑活动中未能实现但具有现代性的相关思考为出发点，有助于对其与当代建筑思想的关系做出更全面的认识。.项目选取形式与材料矛盾最突出的“大屋顶”建筑为研究对象，将建筑师在方案各阶段的相关思考都纳入研究范畴，采用西方的“形式与材料关系”理论体系作为主要分析工具，按照实证研究、理论分析和因素比较的研究路径展开研究。实证研究、理论分析和因素比较三部分将分别揭示个体建筑师的设计手法、建筑师群体的应对方法和建筑师群体的思考方式，并在各自范畴中建立这类建筑与当代建筑活动的关系。由此，以解决一系列手法层面的“小”问题为基础，回答“‘大屋顶’建筑在中国建筑现代化转型中是否有积极的意义？”和“具有怎样的积极意义？”这两个“大”问题。

Throughout the past century, Chinese Renaissance style constituted a significant part of modern Chinese architecture, butis commonly seen as negative for the modern transition of Chinese architecturebecause of the incompatibility between “traditional forms” and “modern materials” within those buildings. The present study, however, provides a reinterpretation of this incompatibility, or the dialectical tension, in order to unearthmodern Chinese architects’valuable ideas that were notfullyimplemented in the projects, and to appreciatecertain architectural activities as well as contemporary architectural thoughts in a more comprehensive way..Centering on the “Large-Roofed” buildings where the inconsistency between forms and materials seems the most apparent,the study explores the architects’related consideration at the different stages of the projects. In the light of the Western architectural theories on the relationship between forms and materials, information recovery, theoretical analysis and comparison of factors are successively done, whichrespectively not only reveal the design methods of each individual architect, the working strategies and the thinking modes of the architects as a group, but alsodiscover the connections between “Large-Roofed” buildings and contemporary architectural activities. Thus, on the basis of addressing somewhat trivialproblems concerning design methods, the study discusses two crucial questions: Is there anything positive within the “Large-Roofed” buildings for the modern transition of Chinese architecture? In what sense and to what extent are they positive?