Ding Wowo is borned in 1957. In 1984 she graduated from Architecture Department of Nanjing Institute of Technology, MD. From 1988 to 1989 she went to the Architecture Department of ETH-Zurich to get further study. Now she is the director of the Faculty of Architecture of Nanjing University.

domus: Can you please tell me about your recent work?
Ding Wowo: I’m working on three projects right now. The first is administrative work; the Architectural Graduate School of Nanjing University has recently upgraded its architecture department, so there are many things to do. We are trying to attract better teachers, especially of the younger generation. We are also researching and designing our undergraduate curriculum, which is most time consuming because we’re trying to do something new in this regard. My second occupation is teaching graduate students, both doctoral and masters candidates. We have our own teaching method, combining course work with practice. The last main project I am working on is research and design, researching urban themes and their relevant techniques and designing projects for urban planning.

domus: Which instrucional aspects of Nanjing’s Reserch Institute of Architecture do you think need improvement？Do you have any ideas or plans?
Ding Wowo: In the current context of Chinese educational systems and the architectural market, the Nanjing Research Institute of Architecture has many areas to improve on, although it has achieved much in recent years. Education can’t develop if it deviates from the context of the whole country, especially for architectural education, so it will be hard to make some changes. We’re trying to develop the undergraduate teaching program to improve the situation on the whole. We think there could be solutions.

domus: How does Nanjing’s local culture affect your work and research?
Ding Wowo: Nanjing is not a creative city and its economy is developing slower than other cities in southern part of China, especially Shanghai and Hangzhou. But Nanjing is a peaceful place, and the pace of life is not too fast. Quality of life here is also relatively higher than the average city in China, so Nanjing is a calm place for people to do research. I like Nanjing.

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