Kevin Siu

Co-founder & Director, AaaM Architects

Kevin Siu co-founded AaaM Architects with the belief on architecture as a medium for culture and social interactions. He has been leading the studio to promote architectural and design culture through design works in architecture, interiors, installations and a spectrum of public engagement projects. AaaM's works have been receiving international acclamations, including Japan Good Design Award - Best 100, DFA Award, Singapore Good Design Award, K-Design Award, and etc. Kevin Siu was also awarded “Perspective 40 under 40” in 2018.

Kevin is also active in the academic field. He has been the Adjunct Assistant Professor at the Department of Architecture in the Chu Hai College of Higher Education in Hong Kong since 2012. With the aspiration of empowering children to unleash their creativity and collaborative power, he has been practicing and advocating design thinking education in primary and secondary learning environment. In recent years, he has been adopting participatory design approach with innovative workshops and activities to engage with children, parents, teachers and community stakeholders to co-create the new generation of public playgrounds in Hong Kong.

He is also the father of two playful children.

Irene Cheng

Co-founder and Designer Principal, HIR Studio

Irene Cheng is the Co-founder and Designer Principal of the HIR Studio. She is a Hong Kong and UK registered architect, with over 15 years of experience in architecture and public space design. As an architect, installation artist, and mom of 3-year-old twin boys, Irene wears many hats. Her designs aim to create unique and engaging experiences for all ages, using design to stimulate public engagement as well as dialogue and aspires to combine craft and innovation to create spaces that enrich communities.

She founded "Your Place Your Play", a platform for co-creating new playground designs with children in their neighbourhood through various design thinking activities, aiming to create play spaces that truly belong to children. Some of her other recent public designs include the Aberdeen Children's Libraries, Recycled Plastic Furniture for the Sha Tin Town Hall and the Ornithopter, an interactive outdoor installation at Tamar Park. She is also a Certified Playground Safety Inspector (CPSI).

Irene graduated from the Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London. She is the Winner of the Hong Kong Institute of Architects Young Architect Award 2017 and the Perspective 40 under 40 award 2019. She is also a speaker at TEDxTinHauWomen 2022.

Groundwork

Groundwork was first founded in London, 2007, for the exploration of experimental architecture, urban and landscape design. Our formal studio, Groundwork Architecture + Associates Ltd. (a.k.a Groundwork Architecture & Urbanism Ltd.), was founded in Central, Hong Kong in 2011, where we have realized a range of professional, social, and theoretical projects.

We have grown within recent years and we are actualizing more of our visions in Asia and around the world for a group of prestigious clients, including some of the most esteemed visionaries in the world: HSBC, Swire Group, Henderson, Nan Fung, Hong Kong Design Centre, Simmons Bedding International, Art Basel, M+, The Emperor Group, Café de Coral Group, the HKSAR government, the Shenzhen municipal government, etc. We are a multi-disciplinary studio that not only helps clients build but also helps them formulate business and positioning strategies through our research vehicle. Part of our current work is research works that focus on social discourses too. Our design must be socially responsive and responsible.

Groundwork aspires to be a platform that may explore how architecture, arts, social responsibilities, and aesthetics may be synthesized. We believe that aesthetics is integral to any social and business development.