

ethan
i believe in telling stories through design.
As someone who was born and raised in the international city of Hong Kong, I believe that the future of design and architecture should be global, sustainable, and centered on human experiences.
I recently graduated from Northwestern University with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication, where I studied Music Theatre and Architectural Engineering & Design with the Segal Design Certificate. Thanks to my multidisciplinary educational background and extracurricular experiences, I bring a unique brand of design that is fresh, accessible, and communicative to my work.
skills & experiences
SUMMER 2024 — Seoul Architecture Workshop | Northwestern University x Korea University x STLarchitects x Olson Kundig
SUMMER 2023 — Architecture Design Intern | Booth Hansen
SUMMER 2022 — Digital Design Marketing | PHASE Scientific International Limited (Hong Kong)
Featured Student Work (Arboris Heights, Bike Barns, District West) | Northwestern University Architectural Engineering & Design Program
• AutoCAD, Rhino, Revit, SolidWorks & Enscape
• 3D Printing (MakerBot) & Laser-cutting
• Adobe Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Lightroom, XD)
• Procreate, Corel Vector & Canva
• Video & Content Creation (Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve)
• Website & UX Development (Webflow, Wix, Figma)

sound oasis
ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN SUMMER
2024
TIMBER PAVILION — 4 DAY DESIGN CHALLENGE
NODEULSEOM — SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA
TEAM: HAJRA MALIK + ETHAN CHENG + KAYLA TILLMAN + BRIAN PARNESS
Project Role: Co-Designer + Lead Renderer
Sound Oasis on Nodeulseom, a manmade island on the Han river in the heart of Seoul, aims to provide a place of respite and quiet from the hustle and bustle of the city around it.
Located on an abandoned helipad on the east side of the island, the Oasis is an ode to the vernacular of traditional Korean architecture — as seen in its timber louvers, linear spatial arrangement, and adherance to the concept of baesanimsu — while being unafraid to reinvent in ways that represent a modern South Korea. The familiar form of a pitched roof is




rainwater → greywater
Cross sections by Hajra Malik


ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
Project Role: Designer + Renderer
arboris heights
SPRING 2023
MASS - TIMBER HIGH RISE SKYSCRAPER
400 N ELIZABETH ST, CHICAGO IL
TEAM: ETHAN CHENG + NASSER NDUHI
The Arboris Heights Project, located in Chicago’s vibrant West Loop, aims to transform a challenging urban site into a sustainable hub of community engagement. A high-rise office building that is seamlessly integrated with its surroundings, Arboris Heights combines a mass timber structure (whose 20’ x 20’ grid is also expressed on its façade), communitycentric design, and sustainability to redefine modern collaborative workspaces while harmonizing with the urban landscape. This project is featured on Northwestern University’s Architectural Engineering & Design Minor website.





EXPLORING MASSING OPTIONS THROUGH
ROTATING AND CARVING



THE BUILDING IS PROGRESSIVELY CARVED OUT IN 20‘ x 20‘ STRUCTURAL GRID SEGMENTS THAT ARE REFLECTED ON THE FACADE AND THE LAYOUT




Floor plans by Nasser Nduhi





ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
Project Role: Co-Designer + Main District & Massing Renders
west
MIXED-USE URBAN AND LANSCAPE DESIGN W DIVERSEY/UP-NORTH/W FULLERTON/N WESTERN, CHICAGO IL
TEAM: ETHAN CHENG + HAJRA MALIK + WILLIAM MARCHETTA
Located at the intersection between Logan Square and Lincoln Square, the design of District West is predicated on the idea of a central cultural core, enlivened by the river flowing through it, that stitches the surrounding urban fabric together. Drawing from the few major performance spaces in the Chicagoland area, the plan is centralized around a large proscenium theater. A library, museum, public park, and amphitheater support this performance space to create a core of cultural jewels that activate the riverfront for the residents of the district.
This project is featured on Northwestern University’s Architectural Engineering & Design Minor website.






City Block Render by William Marchetta
Axon by Hajra Malik




Render by William Marchetta
Performance Center
Library
Amphitheatre

MYAC concert hall
ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
Project Role: Facade + Interior Renders, Modelwork
SUMMER 2023
CULTURAL AND PERFORMING ARTS PROJECT
878 LYSTER RD, HIGHWOOD, IL
LEADS: LARRY BOOTH, KELLY TANG, JOHN NEDEAU; INTERNS: ETHAN CHENG + NICK LORENZEN
As a summer intern working at Booth Hansen, a Chicago-based architecture firm, I was able to contribute to a project proposal for a new concert hall facility on the campus of the Midwest Young Artists Conservatory, a youth music and jazz organization based in Highwood, Illinois. Working under a team of professional architects, including firm founder Larry Booth, Associate Architect Kelly Tang, and Associate John Nedeau, fellow summer intern Nick Lorenzen and I created different interior design concepts for the lobby and auditorium, as well as several renderings of the project to be compiled into a proposal brief booklet for investors.









Facade Renders by Polen Ton & Ethan Cheng
ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
Project Role: Co-Designer + Interior Renders
SPRING
2023
bike barns
MIXED-USE PUBLIC SPORTS FACILITY
687 SHERIDAN RD, WILMETTE IL
TEAM: POLEN TON + MAIRI GLYNN + SHUTING LAI + ETHAN CHENG
Bike Barns is a hypothetical cycling center located near the Bahá’í Temple in Wilmette, Illinois. With a comprehensive list of facilities such as a full-service bike shop, café, spin studio, and multifunction event space, our focus for the building was on implementing high performance strategies throughout the design process. The façade of the cycling center is inspired by the natural wave of the irregularly shaped site as well as the adjacent North Shore Channel, while the curved curtain walls and vertical timber louvers maximize views of the Temple across the river and natural light throughout the building. Visitors can enter the center from multiple entry points on Sheridan Road: the main lobby in the middle, the bike shop to the right and the café to the left.
Several high-performance design elements are implemented throughout the center, such as the inclusion of an on-site energy generation system powered by wind turbines and solar
PV arrays, a greywater system that recycles greywater from sinks and showers, and year-round air conditioning that utilizes a ground source heat pump for radiant floor heating.
This project is featured on Northwestern University’s Architectural Engineering & Design Minor website.





ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
park elementary
WINTER 2023
FULL-SERVICE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PROJECT
EVANSTON IL
SOLO PROJECT
Park Elementary Evanston is designed to blur the lines between buildings and nature, between school and park. Inspired by the natural landform of the site and the lack of public green spaces in the area, the classrooms are embedded into the terrain, creating a sunken courtyard that provides an unobtrusive view of the greenery from the outside while maintaining privacy and security for students and faculty. The site is bookended by two main buildings that echo the rounded arches of the classrooms while providing ample and flexible spaces for educational uses.

02 scenic & themed design
As a student at Northwestern University, I was fortunate enough to intersect my passion for architecture with my other interests in theatre and themed design through various avenues, ranging from theme park design competitions to theatre shows! Here are some of my favorite projects that I’ve worked on during my undergraduate career.














Shedd Aquarium Concept Art — in collaboration with Anna Cao














03 photography
As an amateur photographer, I am fascinated by the relationship between manmade structures and the natural landscapes they inhabit. During my travels around the globe, I am always on the lookout for opportunities to capture fleeting moments where the two intersect and fuse in unique ways.
