Dirk Uwe Moench

More than ever an architect’s work is characterized by contradictions: To act regionally, we need to think globally. To keep tradition alive, we must embrace modernity. As a German working in China, I stand in awe before three decades of unprecedented growth transforming dilapidated towns into modern cities. But modernization came at a cost: In many cities the historical substance vanished. New districts often failed to make people connected to each other or to the place. Talking to people – clients, community members – I feel the frustration as they struggle to uphold a sense of identity and find themselves cast between a tradition lost and a future undiscovered. Facing issues which transcend the infrastructural, our work revolves around the impact urbanization has on residents. In it we hope that architecture can induce healing to traumatized environments: by reinforcing human contact, developing local heritage, facilitating spiritual experience - thus fulfilling essential human needs.