The architect tells us why it’s important to set aside fear and take lots of calculated risks
Prior to setting up design office COLLECTIVE, Generation T lister Betty Ng was design director at OMA Rotterdam with internationally renowned architect, Rem Koolhaas, where she led the winning proposals for Axel Springer Media Headquarters in Berlin, the Hermitage Museum Art Repository in St. Petersburg and the West Kowloon Cultural District Master Plan in Hong Kong, to name a few.
She also has experience with Herzog & de Meuron and Massimiliano Fuksas and is considered a force to be reckoned among architectural and design circles.
We met with Betty at one of her favourite haunts, Second Draft and in our latest edition of the Tatler 10, where we pose 10 questions to Hong Kong-based entrepreneurs about their businesses, Betty tells us why fear shouldn’t stand in your way and why clarity, beauty and function are key.
What does Hong Kong mean to you?
Hong Kong seems to be capable of accommodating all kinds of contradictions in all aspects and I’m constantly intrigued by this quality of tension and contradiction.
Summarise your business in one sentence.
COLLECTIVE is an international research and idea-driven design office practicing architecture, interiors and urban design; while COLLECTIVE remains dedicated to the realisation of architecture, we also engage in areas beyond traditional boundaries, operating also as a research unit and design consultancy, working in scenography, exhibition design, and experiential art.
See also: The Tatler 10: Kelly Lo
What is your proudest accomplishment?
I feel as though I’m not at a point where I can say anything, I’m still working on it!
