2018
1966年，西方建築界同時出版了三本重要的建築論述，羅西（Aldo Rossi）的《城市的建築》、葛雷高蒂（Vittorio Gregotti）的《建築的領域》與范裘利（Robert Venturi）的《建築的複雜與矛盾》。隨後幾年在紐約，伴隨1972年《五位建築師》一書的出版，氣勢洶湧⋯⋯
Our world is shaped by design. Spaces, clothing, typography—these elements quietly determine how we live, often without us noticing. Let’s turn our attention to the overlooked details and forgotten corners. How do people with a heightened sensitivity to the world around them experience a city? How do they wear their beliefs? How do they bring imagination into form through their hands? How do they speak about design? And how can design be discussed beyond the realm of iconic masters? What everyday creativity lies just within reach, waiting to be seen?
To document an extraordinary soul through the lens is to constantly wrestle with the dilemma of completeness. How can one capture the vastness of a life within the limited time of a film? It challenges the filmmaker’s depth of understanding and precision of perspective. Rather than striving for an all-encompassing portrait, it may be more powerful to focus on select moments—those glimmers that illuminate the subject’s essence. The camera becomes not only a tool to pierce through the surface, but also a means for sincere conversation with the person in front of it.
In the month of 9/11 in the early 2000s, graphic design master Milton Glaser, creator of "I ❤️ NY," powerfully expressed the hopeful and fearless spirit of New Yorkers with a new poster: "I ❤️ NY MORE THAN EVER." The magic of New York's spirit captivated me, drawing me to move to the city two years later. In 2005, I lived in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, across the river—a dreamland for hippies and artists. Shepard Fairey's graffiti adorned the streets, and at night, for just five dollars, you could slip through a small door into a food warehouse by the river to hear all sorts of wild music performances. At that time, there was no social media, and artists expressed themselves to the world in a very pure way. Banksy secretly hung his work in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, only to be discovered by security two hours later. Marina Abramović and her partner Ulay finally gazed into each other's eyes amidst the sprawling queues at MoMA. After Alexander McQueen passed away, "Savage Beauty" at the Metropolitan Museum became a city-wide sensation. These slightly aged, yet fortunately experienced, New York moments—their initial shock and emotion—have been permanently sealed as scenes, shaping my future attitude towards art and design.