Reconnecting with China

Architecture promises ideals: creating cities of the future, designing for a better world. But how do those ideals hold up in a time of fragmentation and friction?

For twenty years, Dutch architect John van de Water and his partner Jiang Xiaofei have lived this question firsthand in China. They have realized iconic projects (the Lucky Knot Bridge, the China Rose Museum) shaped by dialogue between East and West, state and market, speed and sustainability.

Reconnecting with China reflects on these experiences. It is a personal and unflinching exploration of a country, both mirror and horizon. Blending lived experience with critical reflection, Van de Water shows how building in China is never only about China — it is also about ourselves, our cities, and our future. Sometimes difference brings us closer in ways that agreement never can.