Future Memories

Lecture Summary:
After rapid urbanization, China is now entering a phase of urban renewal and rural-urban integration, focusing on enhancing existing spaces. A key challenge for architects is how to preserve local cultural heritage while addressing contemporary needs and shaping future cultural memory. Through four diverse projects—the iFLYTEK AI Headquarters Campus, the Chaishan Island Elderly Care Home, the Kimpton Huangshan, and the Lishui Guyanhuaxiang Art Center—this talk explores how architecture, centered on human needs and experiences, can shape culture and empower spaces. By integrating the strategies of "Shaping through Culture" and "Empowering through Space," architecture can sustain social value and extend collective memory over time. 

Key Points:

1. Urban renewal and rural-urban integration are defining trends of our time. Architecture should actively respond by continuing the narrative of existing spaces. 

2. The future of architecture lies beyond single-function physical spaces—it must break boundaries, embracing hybridity, openness, and multidimensional interactions. 

3. The greatest significance of design is its social impact—creating spaces that enhance well-being while unlocking cultural, economic, and social potential.