BreadStudio founders Benny Lee and Paul Mui hope to do something within their territory to not only make the city more green but also inspire the public to be more eco-friendly.
The pair have been friends since high school when they both played in the Hong Kong Youth Strings and Hong Kong Youth Symphony Orchestra, but lost contact after Mui finished his public examinations.
So it was a surprise reunion when they both ended up reading architecture at the University of Hong Kong.
Mui traces his artistic interest to his parents, who are both amateur painters.
But his goal to become an architect was sparked by a documentary on renowned architect I M Pei in a museum he built.
"He talked about how he positioned the staircase, how he positioned the lobby and how he allowed people to maneuver in his building," said Mui. "It was amazing that people would follow what you have planned in a physical environment and move around with your plan."
He recalled watching the architect speak to visitors without disclosing his identity. Pei's joy in hearing how people liked his building made Mui determined to do the same - so much so that even though he failed to get in initially, he sat in on architecture classes until he successfully transferred onto the program.
Lee's path into architecture was slightly different. It began as a combination of parental expectations and artistic interest. Only in his second year of studies did he realize his passion and interest in the field.
"What an architect does is similar to what a composer does in music. There is still art to this sector, so I picked architecture as my JUPAS first choice," said the ardent musician.
After their graduations, both chose to pursue their Year-Out, postgraduate studies and first jobs in Britain and became flatmates.
"Architecture students have to live a very hard life due to the assignments and we treasure moments of exchange with each other when we need help in our models and work, so it is always good to keep each other company," said Lee.
To assess their skills and teamwork, the pair entered competitions together after hours.
"It turned out to be very successful because in the first year we started teaming up to join competitions. Out of the five that we joined, we won four," said Lee.
One of these competitions was for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge.
"That was when we were quite determined that this is the path that we will go for."
In 2011, Lee and Mui started their own architectural firm called BreadStudio - "because we think good architecture is like bread. We always see bread as life and essential. And bread can be consumed in an expensive way or as a life maintainer. I think architecture is much the same way."
After being in the field for 14 years, the pair had worked on various buildings and won many competitions. The most recent was the Good Design Award 2021, with the Wan Chai Community Green Station.
"We found that sustainability is a very Chinese concept, even though it came from the West," said Lee. "Actually we have been living with nature and by nature since a very long time in our Chinese tradition."
Lee said many ancient Chinese practices work with the environment, such as sun-drying food or water wheels, while Mui found that the idea of sustainability has always been around but modern architects seek out more technological solutions.
"For example, ventilation is one of the big topics. In the old days, the Chinese used the courtyard and Western architecture had the colonnade and courtyard to bring in the breeze to cool down the building. What the industry is currently doing follows the same principle about ventilation, but the device is different," said Mui.
For the community green station, the pair use the combination of trellises and vegetation on top of the structure to provide shading and heat cover to insulate the building beneath.
Windows are installed on either side of the building and when opened create airflow from the waterfront to the courtyard in front of the structure, giving the structure natural ventilation.
"As architects, we are standing in the front line being sustainable ambassadors. If you ask me, buildings are unavoidably important to take the role to do environmental good for the city," said Mui. "Sustainability is always embedded in our design in BreadStudio, but in this modern time, we look at it through technology and also material."
The wood-like trellis is made out of glass-reinforced plastic instead of wood. Even though it seems more sustainable to use timber, plastic lasts longer and requires less maintenance and repair costs.
"Sometimes people would only look at the face value of the material but what they overlook is the manufacturing cost and the wastage behind," Mui said.
While the pair were happy to have won the accreditation, they were most glad to see the community enjoying the structure.
"Sustainability, instead of being a fancy word, is more about being responsible for what we have designed, to the community, to Hong Kong, and to the world," said Lee.
