Cheng Gong Leads Snøhetta’s Spring Engagements Across China
This spring marks a vibrant season of exchange and collaboration for Snøhetta in China, led by Cheng Gong, Studio Director China. From Shanghai to Beijing to Xiamen, Cheng will represent Snøhetta across a series of academic, professional, and cultural events, strengthening our dialogue with universities, institutions, and design communities nationwide.
Shanghai
Snøhetta is honored to begin its appointment as the Li Dehua–Luo Xiaowei Design Chair Professor at the College of Architecture and Urban Planning, Tongji University in Shanghai, for the Spring 2026 semester. To inaugurate this collaboration, Cheng, together with Robert Greenwood (Partner & Director for Asia Pacific), and Martin Gran (Managing Director at Snøhetta Foundation) will deliver a public lecture on March 5. The session will introduce the key themes and pedagogical approach that will guide Snøhetta’s teaching throughout the semester and marks the beginning of a meaningful academic partnership with one of China’s leading architecture schools.
On March 20, Cheng will speak at Design Shanghai 2026, one of China’s most influential design platforms. His talk, titled “Sensing Space – Architecture as the Art of Preposition,” will explore how Snøhetta orchestrates human experience through spatial relationships. Moving beyond discussions of form and function, Cheng will reframe architecture as a choreography of in, out, under, through, and between—the prepositions that define how our bodies and emotions interact with the built environment. Through a series of Snøhetta’s seminal works, he will illustrate how landscape, architecture, and multiple disciplines converge to shape settings that invite connection, participation, and a profound sense of belonging.
Continuing the conversation on future‑oriented design, Cheng will join the panel discussion at the RIBA Shanghai International Architecture Festival Forum on April 1, where this year’s theme, “Cyber Era | AI‑Powered Intelligent City Construction,” brings together leading architects, researchers, and innovators. In dialogue with other speakers, Cheng will extend his reflections on spatial experience into the technological realm, addressing how AI and emerging digital tools are reshaping the way cities evolve. Together, these two Shanghai engagements highlight Snøhetta’s commitment to exploring the intersection between human experience, technological advancement, and the evolving role of architecture in an increasingly interconnected world.
Beijing
Beijing Library, shortlisted for the RIBA International Award for Excellence 2026, will receive a site visit from the Award Ambassador Yosuke Hayano (Principal Partner at MAD Architects) in early April. Cheng will guide the visit, offering insight into the design process and transdisciplinary collaboration behind one of Snøhetta’s most significant cultural projects in China.
Xiamen
Snøhetta has been invited to participate in the major exhibition of Xiamen International Design & Art Week 2026, held at the Xiamen Art Museum, one of the city’s key cultural institutions. Curated jointly by the Academy of Arts and Design at Tsinghua University and the Publicity Department of the Xiamen Municipal Committee, the exhibition brings together leading voices in design and the arts.
As part of the showcase, Snøhetta will present the Shanghai Grand Opera House, highlighting the project’s design ambition and its role in shaping Shanghai’s contemporary cultural landscape. The exhibition will run from April 20 to May 20, 2026. And Cheng will attend the opening on behalf of Snøhetta.