Yen-Yen Teh
Practice: Emulsion
Established: 1998
City: London
Country: United Kingdom
www.emulsionarchitecture.com
[email protected]
Yen-Yen Teh was born in London in 1971 after her parents moved to the UK from Malaysia. She studied architecture at the University of Cambridge and the Bartlett School, UCL, between 1990 and 1996. Yen-Yen founded Emulsion in 1998, and Michael Deeley joined her as co-director in 2009. The practice has a broad range of work, from private and commercial residential through to office fit-out, restaurants and retail. Emulsion's network of creative collaborators include furniture, industrial and graphic designers.
Yen-Yen has been a design tutor on the architecture degree courses of the University of Greenwich and the Bartlett School, where she is also currently an external examiner. Emulsion ran a guest design workshop at Chelsea School of Art in 2009. Yen-Yen is also on the board of the Meme Partnership initiative, curating and commissioning events and exhibitions to champion London-based creativity across the design and arts disciplines.
Emulsion
CLM
Camilla Lowther Management is a London and New York-based agency that represents photographers and stylists. Their building in Notting Hill, London, underwent extensive refurbishment, including the addition of a roof terrace. Internally, the office fit-out included spatial reorganisation, new bespoke furniture and a simple monochromatic palette of materials inspired by art photography.
| Do you think our profession is diverse enough? | In architectural education the demographic is a healthy mix - a trend which should be encouraged to continue into professional life. At Emulsion, we find ourselves, by default, a diverse set of people, multi-cultural and international, and we believe that we are part of a like-minded cosmopolitan generation. The construction industry is notorious for its lack of diversity, but this is something that we as practicing architects should have the power to change, simply by taking part. |
| Who are your role models who inspire you? | I don't really have role models, but draw inspiration from different sources. The LCC Architects' Department has always inspired me with its energy and intent to change London for the better. Outside architecture, I admire Kim Gordon, for crossing music, fashion and art. Also Fluxus, whose collaborative, interdisciplinary and diverse nature has been influential on my outlook. My peers and friends are also my inspiration: I am lucky to be surrounded by creative talented people who I see every day. |
| How have your clients and projects benefited from your involvement? | As a practice, we aspire to build personal relationships with our clients - a commissioned project is a huge responsibility, and through mutual understanding we can develop and interpret a detailed brief, which is the key to a successful project. Our approach is holistic - we're excited by the process of designing and making architecture. We hope that our clients enjoy this aspect of working with us, and that completed projects continue to give users as much enjoyment. |