Hi, I am Fei and I am an architect(ural victim).
I love architecture. I love the outcome, spaces, the social impact it has on the society, the architectural community.
I hate architecture. I hate the process, the computer, being a small part who draws door-details in a large machinery and the side-effetcts it has on my body.

What I always liked about architecture was the physical part of it. It starts with imagination, but it ends up with something you can enjoy and experience with all your senses. Somehow a lot like cooking. During my education as an architect at the Angewandte in Vienna we also got inspired by food and nature.

I was at the Excessive studio by Hernan Dianz Alonso. Different from the other education in China, Professor Alonso inspired us from a pile of bloody organs from Human body or animal or biological organisms. I was totally distracted during the whole class, because those things just let me think of those delicious dishes in my hometown, like 爆炒腰花(fried pig kidney),天麻炖猪脑(pig brain soup with Chinese medicine)est. Just can’t stop imaging my hometown food during the whole class. Then I found that’s really interesting when architect connect to food.

So somehow my architectural process of creation was always connected to food and cooking.

The second point, I want to connect architecture and food in a more direct way is that since I got married, I lost most of my dedication to sit hours in front of a screen, which could be a problem, because my husband is a dedicated and passionate power-machine, when it comes to architecture. So while he becomes a handsome, talented architect, I turn slowly into a wrinkled housewife. But there is a saying in China: “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.”  And that’s my way. With me trying out a lot of recipes for the architect’s kitchen, he will have to eat a lot. It will keep his talent, so he can provide for the family, but if he would gain some pounds, I also wouldn’t mind… ;)

What I love about cooking is the outcome and the impact it has on a community.
What I love even more is the process of cooking.

To start with imagination and not knowing the result, but to be certain and confident that the outcome will taste great…
I’m going to prepare simple recipes for everybody, dedicated to specific architects, turning their thoughts about form, function and society into something yummy.
So, I hope I got your interest and you stay with me on my journey to a more delicious architectural life.

 

Here is my first try  making a dish dedicated to the first chinese architect who won the Pritzker Prize: Wang Shu, whom I respect a lot because of his work and his way to treat natural ressources. He salvaged over two million tiles from demolished traditional houses to reuse them in some of his breathtaking designs. Collecting already existing materials and mixing them to become something entirely new, reminded me on baking bread, which is the core of nutrition for the Western World for centuries. Bread is the base for this dish, for the toppings, please follow the recipee at the end of the post.

So, this dish is going out to Wang Shu with common and natural materials, handcrafted, effordable, practical and sustainable. No chemicals. And quite delicious for all senses.

I hope your brain and tummy got inspired and you enjoy a slice of Wang Shu.