LI XIANG
“Don’t rush for success, accept the challenging period of life.”
#WomenWhoBuild, meet Li Xiang
Li is the Founder & CEO of X+Living Architectural Design in Shanghai. X+L Architectural Design has worked at the cutting edge of art, fashion, and business. Li has gained cross-field achievements by exploring interior design as an architect, creating many design works with commercial and aesthetic values in the culture, retail, hotel and other industries. Her high-profile design has become the benchmark in aesthetic design and strategic design, and won international recognition with a series of top international awards. She was awarded the Andrew Martin’s International Interior Design Award three time, has received 2 Platinum award and 9 Golden award in A’ Design Awards. Li Xiang is the first Chinese designer that was invited as a jury member of the Frame Awards. In 2020, she was selected as the only Chinese designer in FAST COMPANY: ‘Global: Most Creative People in Business’ that year. Owing to Li’s guidance and management, X+Living with its unique surreal fantasy space aesthetics has become one of the leading design forces with great international influence and was chosen as the jury winner of Best Commercial Firm in 2022 Architizer A+ Awards.
B.C. Glacial Water Retail Store// Photo by: SFAP
Congratulations on completing a decade of X+Living. If you could describe your architectural journey with us in a single phrase, what would that be?
Full of arduous work but worthy of persevering in innovation.
How was your educational journey in architecture? How do you believe it laid the foundation for the professional choices you’ve made in your career?
After I got my bachelor’s degree in architecture, I worked as an architect in UK and China for some years until I decided to found my own firm in 2011. I think the experience and knowledge I gained during that time allowed me to develop a mindset which enables me to examine a space from a multi-dimensional perspective. It also allows me to pay special attention to the integration of functions, making every detail meaningful, and try to achieve the perfect balance between aesthetics and function.
Changsha FUNDOLAND// Photo by: SFAP
Could you talk to us about how a typical day at your studio looks for you?
My day is usually filled with team or client meetings, project reviews with our design teams, and materials reading of new projects. I also need to visit our project sites regularly to inspect the progress and especially the details are done properly during construction.
As per a recent report, only 23.3% of architects are women worldwide. How are some ways, you feel, we could encourage a positive change in this imbalance?
First of all, I don't think that women working in the architecture industry lack the relevant professional abilities required, but maybe female architects has too little publicity in the mainstream media, or the mainstream media always associated men with the architecture industry, in which cause fewer women consider architect as a future career. In addition to uniting with the media to improve this situation, as a female practitioners in the architecture industry, I think we should use our own experience and achievements to inspire and encourage other women who wish to join this industry. At the same time, we should not let the gender labels tie our own hands, and focus more on improving our professional abilities.
As someone leading her studio with a multitude of roles (an architect, interior designer, art direction etc.), where do you find your motivation?
My motivations mainly come from two sources.
First, as the founder of a company with over 100 employees, the mission of leading and managing the team to success motivates me. As an architect and interior designer, the goal of creating commercial spaces that integrates art and aesthetics, and are able to touch the heartstrings of others, and bring futuristic art atmosphere and experiences to allow visitors to temporarily escape their invariable everyday life is also where I find my motivation from.
You’ve mentioned one of your goals to, “bring surprise and happiness to boring daily life and make people immersed in a whimsical and artistic world”. Could you walk us through your design process?
Comparing to interior design in the traditional sense, my work process is not simply decorating a space, but to use architectural techniques to do overall planning and create a ‘city’ and a ‘world’ in the space. My works always seem to present a magical, dreamy, and even surreal style is because what I want to create is not just a beautiful space, but a spatial experience for visitors.
For each project, based on its background and our own research, the design usually starts with what kind of overall atmosphere and spirit that the project should present, then the emotions it should bring to its visitors. After that I will start designing its symbolic representations and structure with the integration of practical functionalities during the process.
We would always do full 3D renders of the whole space in order to present the complete effect of our design. And in order to make sure that our design are strictly constructed in every detail, we would have on-site designers at the constructions sites, and we would regularly visit the project sites to do inspections as well.
POPMART Global Flagship Store// Photo by: SFAP
Why do you think some of the crucial business strategies are being overlooked by the AEC professionals and how could one plan around them?
I think the differences and lack of cognition are the root causes. Good architects can not only be an expert in their own professional field, but also need to learn from other’s professional knowledge as well. This is especially crucial when creating commercial spaces, how to create interactions between space and customers, and how to bring commercial returns to project owners. A lot of the times we need to think across borders, and consider the rationality of the design from the perspective of the owners and the consumers to make a truly good design.
Shenzhen Meland Club//Shot by: SFAP
As a powerhouse in the AEC industry, what industry insights would you like to share with our young readership?
I would like to share more of a piece of advice rather than an insight: Don't rush for success, accept the challenging period of life. At the same time, don't blindly become a servant to work, keep improving yourself and stay true to your original intention. Creating something innovative is hard, but it is worthwhile. The AEC industry is full of possibility, so never stop exploring.
Interviewed by: Megha Balooni