First Place Winner
ToiLet’s Go
Design by
Xudong Zhu, Jiabin Wei & Lujia Zhu
Xudong Zhu, Jiabin Wei & Lujia Zhu
Xudong Zhu
Xudong Zhu is an architect and urban designer, graduated from Harvard GSD MAUD, where he won the third prize of 2022 Plimpton-Poorvu Design Prize. Before GSD, He holds Bachelor and Master of Architecture with distinction from Tongji University where he received the highest design honor. During his graduate period, he had a one-year double degree program with Politecnico Di Milano. When Xudong studied at Harvard, he co-founded T.E.N, an emerging multidisciplinary design and research studio, in Shanghai. As the principal designer, he has led the team to win many well-known design awards at home and abroad in the past few years, and awarded the Emerging Architect of the Year by BLT, 2O22 BUILT DESIGN AWARDS.
Celebrating Creativity & Vision
Winner’s Spotlight: An Exclusive Interview
Discover the story behind the victory — from concept to creation.
Please introduce yourself in a personal and professional way.
Xudong Zhu:
Hi! I am Xudong Zhu, a founding partner at T.E.N, an emerging multidisciplinary design and research studio based in Shanghai and Boston. I am an architect and urban designer, graduated from Harvard GSD, Politecnico di Milano, and Tongji university. I was originally from Shanghai, and currently work and live in Boston.
What is your design philosophy?
Xudong Zhu:
I keep exploring innovative ways to respond to diverse urban issues, seek improvement strategies, and create publicity to a certain extent. Most of my projects think at different scales about how to respond to the urban context, define public space, shape public events, and form general attributes of equity, inclusion, interaction, and sharing. And then put forward my ideas regarding the concept, planning, space, and operation. I hope this could be one of my professional topics that I can continue to explore in the future because this may be the best way for design to intervene in society and improve public life.
Can you briefly explain your understanding of the topic and the source of ideas?
We saw public toilets as urban infrastructure, specifically, a kind of hygiene and environmental treatment facility. Integrated with autonomous vehicles and landscape strategy, our proposal, ToiLet’s Go, aims to use public toilets as a catalyst to create a movable and informal public space in a high-density urban environment. The design offers numerous flexible opportunities for the city, such as Hongkong, providing a sustainable ventilation strategy, a more environmentally friendly toilet experience, and a temporary place for rest and communication for residents and tourists throughout the city.
When and how you were first introduced to architecture?
Influenced by the rapid development of Chinese cities in the 1990s, especially in my hometown, Shanghai, I dreamed of being an architect in childhood and fantasized about what a great thing it would be if the building I designed could stand up. My dream became true after I started to study Architecture at Tongji University in 2012. It has been 10 years since I got into architecture, learning and doing projects in a different context, and I realize it has become an essential part of my life.
What does architecture mean to you?
Architecture means a lot to me. On the one hand, it has become part of my self-expression. More importantly, it is the best way to bridge me with society, where my design can contribute to public life.
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