We had the distinct pleasure to interview award winning designer Xiyao Wang about their original and creative Bridge design work. Xiyao Wang is an award-winning architectural designer, that makes our world a better place with their original bridge works.
Xiyao Wang ("XW") answered Design Interview ("DI") questions about their award-winning work Hydro Bridge. Interview questions prepared by Frank Scott.
XW : The core idea behind Hydro Bridge is the seamless integration of infrastructure, environment, and community—where a single architectural gesture can serve multiple functions, adapt to seasonal changes, and enhance local quality of life. The bridge is designed to act not just as a passage over the Nakkhu River but as a dynamic platform for social gathering, economic exchange, and ecological resilience. The inspiration stemmed from observing the fluctuating river conditions in the region: dry and arid in some seasons, yet prone to flooding during the monsoon. I saw an opportunity to design a structure that is not only physically adaptive but culturally rooted—one that resonates with local needs while rethinking what a bridge can be.
XW : My primary focus was to create a civic structure that is multifunctional, resilient, and deeply embedded in its context. I wanted to achieve a new typology that merges public space with essential infrastructure—a place where people don’t just pass through, but linger, interact, and thrive. The bridge offers shaded marketplaces, water storage facilities, and even a platform for emergency relief or temporary shelters during flooding. My goal was to design an architecture that responds to both the poetic and practical dimensions of life along the river—a platform for everyday rituals and seasonal transformation.
XW : Hydro Bridge is a conceptual prototype, but I envision adapting it for implementation in flood-prone or underserved regions across South and Southeast Asia. The recognition from this award offers visibility and credibility, which I plan to leverage in approaching NGOs, city planners, and international development agencies. I am currently exploring possibilities for funding and partnerships to bring the design to life, potentially beginning with a pilot project in Nepal or Bangladesh. I also see the design being adapted into an educational toolkit on adaptive infrastructure and resilient public space.
XW : The initial conceptual phase took about six months, during which I conducted field research, feasibility studies, and iterative design development. However, the idea had been germinating for much longer—rooted in earlier academic explorations and observations I made while traveling through South Asia. The design evolved through sketches, physical models, parametric studies, and contextual analysis. It’s a project that matured over time, becoming more robust with each layer of investigation.
XW : This was a self-initiated project, born from a desire to explore how architecture could respond meaningfully to underserved communities and vulnerable ecosystems. It was not commissioned but driven by an impulse to address real-world challenges through speculative yet grounded design. The idea came to me while studying water infrastructure and rural-urban intersections. I saw how essential yet neglected river crossings often are, and I wanted to challenge the idea that such utilitarian structures couldn't also be civic and poetic.
XW : At this point, the design remains a conceptual prototype, though it is ready for adaptation and implementation. I am open to collaborating with public agencies, NGOs, or design-build firms that focus on social impact projects. My intention is not necessarily to commercialize the design but to ensure its realization in communities that could benefit from it. I am actively seeking the right partners and funding mechanisms to prototype the bridge on-site, with local materials and construction methods.
XW : I have always been interested in infrastructural architecture—not just as engineering feats, but as cultural artifacts. In many parts of the world, bridges are among the few pieces of public infrastructure that carry symbolic, economic, and social weight simultaneously. The river systems of Nepal and India are particularly fascinating because they are simultaneously sacred, agricultural, and destructive. I wanted to design something that honored these complex roles while offering pragmatic solutions to real challenges—such as flooding, lack of public gathering spaces, and absence of local marketplaces.
XW : Yes, I was inspired by the infrastructural pragmatism of rural footbridges in Southeast Asia and the sculptural utility of works by architects like Shigeru Ban and Wang Shu, who find elegance in simple, tectonic responses to local materials and needs. I also studied ancient stepwells in India and the flood-adaptive stilt structures of the Mekong Delta. These precedents offered insight into how design can be resilient, contextual, and multifunctional without relying on high technology or excessive ornamentation.
XW : The primary users are local residents—farmers, vendors, children, and elders—who rely on the river for their daily lives. Secondary users include seasonal visitors, relief organizations during flood emergencies, and tourists exploring cultural or ecological routes. In a broader sense, the “customer” is the community itself, as the project is designed to be collectively beneficial rather than client-specific. It is meant for a public realm that transcends individual ownership.
XW : What sets Hydro Bridge apart is its hybrid identity: it is simultaneously a bridge, a public plaza, a water infrastructure, and a seasonal emergency hub. Most bridges are single-purpose structures, but this one is polyfunctional and temporally responsive. It adapts with the river’s rise and fall; it stores water during the dry season and transforms into a pier or refuge during floods. Unlike conventional designs that remain static, Hydro Bridge is alive—it shifts in purpose, function, and meaning over time.
XW : The name Hydro Bridge directly references its central theme: the dynamic interaction between water and structure. “Hydro” acknowledges the bridge’s engagement with river systems—not just crossing water, but working with it. The name is meant to be functional and evocative, suggesting both a technological response to hydrology and a poetic reading of a structure shaped by liquid forces. It captures the idea that the bridge is as much about the flow of people and culture as it is about the flow of water.
XW : I used Rhino and Grasshopper for parametric modeling, enabling me to test various structural geometries and water flow responses. GIS data and topographical mapping tools were used to assess flood zones and landscape behavior. Adobe Creative Suite helped with storytelling and diagrams, while physical models in foam and cardboard were used to test spatial sequences and massing. The project also benefited from simple but effective sketching tools to keep ideas fluid and grounded.
XW : The most unique aspect is the bridge’s temporal adaptability—it’s designed not only for different user groups but also for different seasons. It blurs boundaries between infrastructure and public realm, between object and landscape. Its ability to store water, create marketplaces, and provide flood-time shelters makes it both a community resource and a climate-adaptive system. It doesn't impose itself on the river—it listens, reacts, and harmonizes with it.
XW : I consulted with local engineers and environmental researchers during the concept phase, especially regarding water management and flood risk. Though it was a largely self-driven design, I benefited from informal input from Nepali civil engineers familiar with regional hydrology. If the project progresses into a built phase, I plan to work closely with local artisans, masons, and NGOs to ensure that materials, techniques, and labor align with cultural and environmental conditions.
XW : Technology serves a subtle but critical role. It enabled precision in understanding seasonal hydrological behavior and helped simulate structural responses to different loads and weather events. However, the design intentionally resists overreliance on advanced technologies—it favors low-tech, robust solutions suited for rural contexts. In that sense, technology was used more for analysis and prototyping than for the final output, which remains grounded in vernacular methods and accessible materials.
XW : Yes, extensive site analysis and data research formed the backbone of the design. I studied river behavior across seasons, analyzed rainfall and flood frequency, mapped local pedestrian and vehicular patterns, and researched regional construction materials and costs. I also studied case studies of flood-resilient infrastructure, both ancient and contemporary, to develop an adaptive logic that was both innovative and rooted in local history. These layers of research ensured that the project was both visionary and viable.
XW : One of the main challenges was reconciling the ambition of the design with the realities of local construction practices and funding mechanisms. How could I create a form expressive enough to communicate a new idea, but simple enough to be built affordably and sustainably? Another challenge was addressing safety and resilience during flood season—ensuring that the bridge remains a refuge, not a liability. Finally, proposing a new typology meant facing skepticism: not everyone immediately understands why a bridge should do more than span a river.
XW : Submitting to the A' Design Award was a way to amplify the message and open up new possibilities for realization. I believed the project had a compelling story and a strong social mission—one that could resonate beyond its immediate geographic context. International recognition allows projects like this to step out of the speculative realm and into a more actionable sphere. It was also a way to connect with others in the design community working on infrastructure and resilience.
XW : I learned how to balance poetry and pragmatism, vision and viability. The project pushed me to think not just like an architect, but like a systems thinker, anthropologist, and humanitarian. I became more sensitive to the nuances of informal economies, seasonal rituals, and climate variability. It also reaffirmed my belief in architecture as a social catalyst—one that doesn’t wait for commissions but initiates conversations and imagines new futures.
XW : I would like to emphasize that Hydro Bridge is more than a design—it’s a proposition. It suggests a way forward for infrastructure that is ecological, inclusive, and beautiful. In a time when climate change and urbanization are colliding in unprecedented ways, we need public works that do more, mean more, and serve more. Hydro Bridge invites us to think of every crossing as a place—not just to pass over, but to arrive at something better.
