US-based Chinese designer bridges architecture, community, and culture

A United States-based Chinese architectural designer is promoting her unique design narrative that architecture can "become a story of community", reminding people that beauty, community, and belonging can exist in the same space.

Ying Xiong, who holds a bachelor's of Architecture from Pratt Institute and a master's of Advanced Architectural Design from Cornell University, is now based in New York and specializes in conceptual storytelling and spatial identity.

"Every city has its own rhythm, and every person has a different relationship with space," Xiong said. "When we design, we are translating these emotions into form."

As a lead designer of the STUDIOS team, she directed the development of the amenity floor, an 11,000-square-foot communal space within the 530,000-square-foot 825 Third Avenue tower, overseeing its design narrative from concept to completion.

The resulting space was filled with light, warmth, and calm — a rare quality in Midtown Manhattan's fast-paced corporate landscape — drawing wide attention across New York's architectural community and earning the 2024 CoreNet REMYS Award for Project of the Year (under 25,000 sq ft).

The project became a finalist for the Interior Design NYCxDesign Awards, and was later recognized by the 2025 SARA National Design Awards.