In a Chinese Architectural Firm
 
 "In China, it is of paramount importance to discuss everything, even things that may seem obvious, because what seems logical for us is not for a Chinese person and vice versa."

Vincent Boreux, who holds a Master's degree in Architecture, is a project manager for the architectural firm Sunyat International in Shanghai where is currently working on turning residential homes into office buildings and cultural spaces. "It's an 80,000 square meter project—tiny for the Chinese," he explains adding: "I am very happy because I can focus on the details ". In China, needs are so big and the scale of sizes so huge that architects are required to have an understanding of urban planning and design. " For example, when an architect builds a shopping center, other spaces need to be designed too such as roads and public spaces and the space between buildings has to be taken into consideration as well. So, for some projects, we just don't have the time go into as much detail as we would like," he explains. To meet these great demands, Chinese architectural firms are hiring people as quickly as they can find them. Sunyat International is one of them and it's one of the biggest. The firm currently has 350 employees but the number of growing daily. Vincent is fortunate to be one of only four foreigners to work for the firm. All four work in Research Centre, a department of the firm where twenty people focus primarily on design. "It's very chic to have a foreign designer on staff but this fascination is starting to wear off," says Vincent. Since 2007 when he arrived in China, he has grown used to be stared at work meetings, in public places, in government offices and being an attraction.Vincent does not live the life of a typical expat because he is one of the rare foreigners to work only for Chinese firms. It's fascinating listening to him because in a short period of time he managed to understand the local customs and traditions of his host country; he has a deep and relevant understanding, without judging or excessive irreverence. How does Vincent manage this remarkable achievement?

Like a lot of students, in 1995 Vincent chose to go to architecture school somewhat by chance because the profession seemed to combine two qualities which, at first glance, seem contradicting: creativity and pragmatism. Fanatical about graphic editing programs, Vincent quickly learned how to use them, which would later turn out to be a real advantage. In fact, at the end of the 90s few architects knew as much as he did about computers. In 1999, that advantage helped him get at job as a draftsman with the Eurythmic architectural firm that specializes in building upscale office buildings. "We worked in pairs: a project manager and a draftsman. It was a great learning experience," he explains. The young grad did not want specialize so soon in any particular practice area. Therefore, in 2002 he joined DMS, a small Paris-based architectural firm. This job gave him the opportunity to work on new types of projects and to learn about the government tender process and to gain his first experience on a construction site. Since the firm did not always have tender bids to prepare, he only worked for them on a short-term basis. It was at that point he met Roger Taillibert who wanted to use his talents in computer graphics for a sports facility that he was working on. This was the beginning of an unexpected alternate source of employment. For the next four years, he was back and forth between the two firms. That enabled him to work on a great variety of projects both in terms of their nature and size. However, Vincent was aware that he was going to have to make a choice: "I realized I had to choose. Two options were open to me: become a computer graphics designers or an architect ". He opted for architecture and graduated with his degree in 2006.

The new graduate then decided to move to China to look for work. "I had always wanted to work abroad," he explains. For years, out of personal interest, he had taken Japanese language courses and had met a lot of Chinese people there. Some of them have become close friends. "They really made me want to discover their country," says Vincent. In 2007, he was offered a job as project manager at Eté Lee and Associates, a Chinese architectural and urban design firm. One of the firm's partners had studied in Paris and there were regular student exchanges between the University of Tongji and the Paris-Belleville Architecture School. However, the vast majority of the firm's projects are still designed and developed in China. "This environment was really perfect to get started. If I was really too lost, I could at least explain things to this partner in French," Vincent explains with a sense of humor. But, in fact, getting used to different work practices turned out to be complicated and the many misunderstandings as he describes very well: "An organization had asked me to build a church. I was really proud of my proposal: a plan with a traditional cross with more modern biblical imagery." He stops himself for a second before adding: "The client seemed happy but I was surprised when he asked me to remove the baptistery... and some imagery like painting the cross red. After the project was approved by the local authorities, I finally realized why. One of my colleagues complimented me...on how beautiful the Protestant temple was!". In China, many decisions are given verbally, confrontations are rare, lots of indirect implications and sometimes mistranslations can lead to this kind of confusion. Vincent is conscious of this and admits: "Part of the effort to adapt and adjust involves accepting that you do not understand everything," he explains. But these stumbling blocks have not kept him from continuing this adventure which, despite it all, is fascinating. The Chinese are patient with his efforts because they know how big and challenging his task is.

Vincent also puts a great deal of his energy into producing work that is different from his competitors at other firms. "That is what is expected of me: originality, style and superior quality. Nothing can be taken for granted here; it's a very competitive environment ". The competition for large projects seems to be never-ending. But Vincent would like slow down in the near future to devote time to project that is dear to his heart: "I would like to show people that in China, high-rises are not necessarily the only response to urban densification ".

What inspires him? "I go through phases. Right now, I'm into studying brutalist architecture."