Abstract:With advancing urbanization and sustained rural out-migration, the vacancy of traditional dwellings has become increasingly prominent in traditional villages, calling for a microlevel understanding of how planning and industry-led interventions reshape vacancy patterns. Taking Wentang Village in Qimen County, Anhui Province, as a case study, this research investigates the patterns and drivers of vacancy in traditional dwellings through field surveys and in-depth interviews. The results show that the vacancy rate of traditional dwellings in Wentang Village has reached 73%. The study describes four mobility patterns: remaining, relocating, returning intermittently,and leaving. Dwelling vacancy is characterized by a combination of seasonal use, living across two residences, and long-term abandonment coexist, and is jointly shaped by micro-level household change and generational succession, as well as external constraints such as disparities in urban-rural public services and the rural homestead system. Although the art village model has improved the physical condition of the built environment, it also faces a disconnect between spatial revitalization and everyday community life. Accordingly, this study proposes a governance approach that accommodates the persistence of living across two residences, emphasizing improved multi-stakeholder benefit-sharing mechanisms to promote synergy between heritage conservation and community revitalization.
