Internationally recognized architect and educator Professor Jenchieh Hung will bring his research-led design practice to Tianjin University, contributing to an international discussion on new approaches to architectural research and design. Tianjin University, through its School of Architecture, will host the 2nd East Asian Architectural Design Research Forum and Exhibition, bringing together architects, researchers, and academics to examine the evolving relationship between architectural practice and research. Following the inaugural forum held at The Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2024, the second edition at Tianjin University will focus on design-based non-traditional research outputs, highlighting the role of design as a means of generating knowledge and advancing architectural inquiry. Among the invited international speakers is Professor Jenchieh Hung, co-founder and principal architect of the Bangkok-based practice Jenchieh Hung + Kulthida Songkittipakdee / HAS design and research. His work brings together architectural experimentation, material investigation, and an ongoing exploration of the relationships between nature, culture, people, and the built environment. For Professor Jenchieh Hung, design and research are not separate stages of a project. They develop in parallel, informing one another through observation, experimentation, and the testing of architectural ideas. This approach positions the design process as a form of investigation in its own right, through which spatial relationships, material behaviour, environmental conditions, and cultural contexts can generate new possibilities for architecture.

Working across architecture, landscape, and urban environments, Professor Jenchieh Hung and Professor Kulthida Songkittipakdee have developed a practice that questions conventional approaches to architectural form. Rather than treating a building as an isolated object, their work investigates how architecture can respond to its surroundings and establish meaningful connections between human experience, natural systems, and contemporary life. Their projects include the Museum of Modern Aluminum Thailand, Simple Art Museum, High Line Bangkok, Aluminum Grotto and Public Ground, The Glade Bookstore, Forest Villa, and Casa de Zanotta. Across these works, material choices and spatial strategies respond to the particular conditions of each project, from the reinterpretation of existing structures to the integration of architecture with landscape and public space. A central framework in their research is Chameleon Architecture, an approach that considers how architecture can adapt to changing environments, social needs, and cultural circumstances. It challenges the idea that architectural identity must remain fixed, proposing instead that buildings and spaces can evolve through their relationships with people, materials, and the world around them. This perspective is particularly relevant to design-based research, where the value of architectural work extends beyond the completed building. The processes of making, testing, and refining design ideas can themselves become forms of knowledge, offering alternative ways to investigate questions that conventional academic methods may not fully address.

Alongside their professional practice, Professor Jenchieh Hung and Professor Kulthida Songkittipakdee have maintained an active commitment to architectural education and international academic exchange. Their teaching and research contributions span institutions in Thailand and internationally. Both Professor Jenchieh Hung and Professor Kulthida Songkittipakdee hold academic appointments as Honorary Professors, Distinguished Professors, Visiting Professors, and Adjunct Professors, with affiliations including Kazan State University of Architecture and Engineering, Tunghai University, Bangkok University, Chulalongkorn University, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, and the World University of Design. Their research is further developed through the Hung And Songkittipakdee Laboratory (HAS Lab), where architectural questions are investigated through design experimentation and the study of spatial systems. One area of inquiry is Patterns, which examines how patterns emerge and how they can serve as a methodology for generating architectural and urban spaces. Rather than functioning solely as visual motifs, patterns are explored as a means of organising relationships, informing spatial configurations, and opening up alternative approaches to architectural design. Professor Jenchieh Hung also contributes to the wider architectural community through The Association of Siamese Architects under Royal Patronage (ASA), where he serves as Exhibition Chairman and Principal Curator. His curatorial projects include Infinity Ground Architecture Exhibition at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre and Collective Language: Asian Contemporary Architecture Exhibition, presented in collaboration with the Architects Regional Council Asia (ARCASIA). These exhibitions have provided platforms for presenting architectural ideas and examining the diversity of contemporary practice across Asia. His international professional contributions include serving as a juror for the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) – RIBA International Awards: Asia Pacific Awards, as the first architect from Thailand appointed to serve on the jury. He was also appointed Guest Editor of the Journal of the Architects Regional Council Asia (ARCASIA Journal), contributing to wider discussions on architectural quality, regional identity, and the development of architectural knowledge across Asia.

Professor Jenchieh Hung’s participation in the 2nd East Asian Architectural Design Research Forum reflects the importance of examining architecture not only through completed buildings, but also through the research methods, design processes, and critical questions that shape them. By bringing together perspectives from architectural practice and academia, the forum offers an opportunity to consider how design can contribute to knowledge production and how research can, in turn, expand the possibilities of architectural practice. For Professor Jenchieh Hung, this exchange aligns with an approach in which experimentation is central to design and architecture remains open to the changing relationships between people, culture, nature, and technology. Continuing the dialogue initiated in Hong Kong in 2024, the forum at Tianjin University will create a platform for international exchange on how architectural research can be developed, communicated, and understood through design. Professor Jenchieh Hung’s contribution will connect the experience of an internationally active architectural practice with broader questions about the future of architectural education and research.