亚洲建筑档案中心由东南大学前校长张广军院士、东南大学建筑外籍院长戴维·莱瑟巴罗教授提议，东南大学和南京市人民政府共同推进，于2019年1月揭牌建设。目前已完成东南大学四牌楼校区建筑改造共860平方米，作为亚洲建筑档案中心起始阶段的运行场所。档案中心的建设空间今后拟继续扩展，并与杨廷宝故居、童寯故居等统筹建设。2022年8月27日，举行了亚洲建筑档案中心的揭幕仪式。
亚洲建筑档案中心是我国第一个自主建设的国际建筑文献、档案中心。在档案的选择、收集、研究方面，皆以国际高水平的建筑历史与理论研究为基础，并在全球学术视野中进行定位与衡量，从而推动学科发展。藏品的扩展将由档案中心馆长引导与负责，包括图纸、模型、照片、绘画、著述、信件等各种形式的重要档案。内容主要包括：
一、立足东南大学建筑学科在中国建筑档案收藏及历史理论领域的领先资源，收藏近现代以来中国建筑、城市和景观的重要档案与文献；
二、国际范围内重要学者/设计师与重要机构的相关资料，单独设室并形成藏品的核心部分之一，包括珍贵的里克沃特教授个人图书馆，它将作为首批特藏，并成为亚洲建筑档案中心建设的重要起点；
三、亚洲及“一带一路”沿线国家地区建筑与相关领域的文献档案，包括联合国教科文组织亚洲建筑遗产管理协会秘书处部分档案。
亚洲建筑档案中心以亚洲、中国为基地面向国际展开收藏、研究与传播，倡导功能集成、开放协作、多元互动，推动“中国-亚洲-国际”建筑文化多重效应和持续发展。它主要面向专业人士的查阅、复制、摘录及展览、研讨，同时也承担面向社会大众的教育传播等职能，全方位展开馆藏档案的利用服务，为国家和地方的建筑、艺术、人文及教育事业做出贡献。
作为国家和地方文化事业的重要组成部分，亚洲建筑档案中心这一具有前瞻性的文化项目建设，将有力促进国际文化交流和文明互鉴，成为东大师生以及中外学者学习与学术交流的中心。同时，它也将有力推进东南大学世界一流大学建设，推进南京建设成为具有重大国际影响力的创新型城市。
Introduction to the Asian Architectural Archive Center
Initiated by academician Zhang Guangjun, former President of Southeast University, and Professor David Leatherbarrow, Foreign Dean of Architecture Internationalization Demonstration School of Southeast University, the Nanjing Municipal Government and Southeast University entered into an agreement to jointly support the construction of Asian Architectural Archive Center. The initial phase of its development began in January 2019, and the site, an old but now renovated building on Sipailou campus of Southeast University, covers an area of 860 square meters. The Archive premises will be further extended in the future and associated with the planned renovation and reuse of the former residences of Yang Tingbao and Tong Jun. The Archive was inaugurated on August 27th, 2022.
The Asian Architectural Archive Center is the first international architectural documentation and archive center in China. The selective collection of archival materials and the support of research topics will be based on the scholarly and professional study of architectural history and theory, considered and valued within the global academic horizon, anticipating and enriching the development of the discipline. Collection development will be guided by the Archive’s Director. All manner of pertinent documents will be archived: drawings, models, photographs, paintings, texts, correspondence, and so on. Its primary collections will include:
1) important archives and documents in the fields of architecture, urban design and landscape architecture in modern China, which are facilitated by the School and University’s existing resources in architectural history and theory, building upon the historical standing and existing advantages of the architecture faculty, researchers, and students of Southeast University.
2) materials of significant international scholars/designers and institutions. These materials will be kept in separate spaces and constitute the core of the Archive, an example of which is the Rykwert Library. It is the first acquisition of the Archive and a collection of international importance, which will lay the cornerstone for the Archive.
3) documents and archives of or from Asian countries and countries along the “Belt and Road,” including some documents from the Secretariat of the UNESCO Asian Academy for Heritage Management.
The Asian Architectural Archive Center is oriented toward architecture in China and Asia, but will build its collections, support research, and foster dissemination of knowledge globally. It upholds the values of integration in its functions, collaboration with openness in its operations, and exchanges among diverse groups. It is a facility that allows scholars to consult, copy, and transcribe materials; provides space for exhibitions and seminars; and shares knowledge on and off campus by making it accessible to the public. Through its diverse functions and extensive collections, the Archive promotes the engagement of architectural culture in the “China-Asia-Global” context, and will make great contributions to architecture, arts, humanities and education locally and nationally.
As a far-reaching project and an essential part of local and national cultural construction, the Archive will promote cultural exchange and mutual learning among civilizations. It will serve as an academic center for students and teachers of Southeast University, and scholars from at home and abroad. The continuous construction of the Archive will also contribute to Southeast University’s academic mission, and help Nanjing develop itself as an innovative city with vital international influence.
