By: Dennis Sola
In an era where architectural representation is often reduced to surface polish or outsourced imagery, Qianhe Fan has built a practice around doing things differently. His approach is not about resisting digital tools, but about using both analog and digital media as integral parts of the design process—from concept development to construction-ready detail. For Fan, drawing, modeling, and rendering aren’t byproducts of a finished design; they’re the scaffolding that holds it together.
At OBRA Architects in New York, where Fan currently practices, this philosophy has shaped the way projects are conceived and communicated. A key example is the Uijeongbu Gosan Childcare Center, a shortlisted competition entry in South Korea that proposed a loosely connected assembly of therapeutic and educational spaces. The geometry was intentionally fragmented, encouraging movement, light, and scaled-down interactions across the site.
To explore the design’s spatial logic, Fan produced a meticulously crafted physical model that was as much a design instrument as it was a representational artifact. “There are certain relationships that you simply can’t judge from a screen,” Fan explains. “A model exists in the same physical space and in real time as the architect. You can rotate it, move around it, get closer to it—completely intuitively.” He points out that elements like light, depth, and proportion are far more legible when experienced physically, especially in projects where spatial nuance is central to the design.
The model also became a critical part of the project’s presentation materials. It featured prominently in the submission package that led to the project’s shortlisting and was later included in The Architect’s Newspaper’s annual roundup of top unbuilt architecture. At a time when many offices have sidelined physical modeling in favor of faster, digital-first workflows, Fan’s commitment to the tactile proved both conceptually and strategically valuable. Rather than a nostalgic return to outdated methods, it was a deliberate use of a medium that clarified architectural intent in ways digital simulations could not.
This kind of clarity extends across Fan’s digital work as well—especially in visualizations. He has produced some of OBRA’s most technically complex renderings, including those for the Cheonggyecheon Connectivity Pavilion in Seoul and a recent Helsinki architecture competition. These images combined V-Ray-rendered architectural models with high-resolution photographic backdrops of the actual sites, producing atmospheric collages that were both grounded and expressive.
“Good rendering isn’t just about visual appeal—it’s about fidelity to the project’s internal logic,” Fan says. “When we produce visuals in-house, we control the narrative. We can iterate fast, make design-based decisions mid-process, and avoid stylized distortion.”
Photo Courtesy: OBRA Architects
Unlike many firms that rely on third-party rendering studios, OBRA’s in-house production—largely driven by Fan’s expertise—offers both financial and conceptual advantages. High-quality rendering services are costly and often aestheticize the project generically, stripping away the specificity of form, material, or context. By handling rendering internally, OBRA preserves a level of precision and intent that directly reflects the architectural thinking behind the work.
Fan also applies the same visual discipline to photography—both as a mode of post-occupancy observation and as a documentary tool. For a study of urban thresholds in East Harlem, he used photography not to produce spectacle but to analyze façade rhythms, storefront transitions, and residual spaces—capturing patterns of everyday use that drawings often miss. In the case of the Potomac House, one of OBRA’s completed private residences, Fan photographed the finished project in natural light to record the material transitions and spatial sequences with the same care given to design. His photography is not branding—it’s part of a closed-loop process of observation, reflection, and architectural learning.
Fan’s grasp of representational clarity also extends to construction-level documentation. During his time at SIDD in Shanghai, he worked on several high-complexity, large-scale projects, including the Waterfront Ecological Aesthetics Testbed in Guiyang. The 23,000-square-meter site involved landscape integration, riverfront circulation, and a family of architectural interventions stitched into the terrain.
Fan led the design of the project, developing its spatial framework, architectural form, and detailed drawings used to coordinate with engineers and consultants across disciplines. These documents were not only internally legible but allowed teams to read the architecture in layered terms: as space, as structure, and as system. The drawing sets didn’t just illustrate the project—they revealed how it worked.
Taken together, these different modes of representation—model, rendering, drawing, photography—form a coherent strategy in Fan’s work. They are not treated as aesthetic outputs layered on top of the architecture, but as active tools that define and test it. His diagrams distill spatial reasoning. His renderings carry the atmosphere and clarity of a built environment. His construction documents communicate intent down to the joint or transition. His photographs complete the cycle.
Across projects and continents, Fan’s work reveals a consistent ethic: representation is not decoration, it is decision-making. Whether crafting a small-scale model for a childcare center, integrating real-world photo backdrops into speculative urban visuals, drafting drawings for riverfront construction, or capturing the final built form in light and lens, Fan brings the same rigor to how architecture is seen—and how it comes to be.
Photo Courtesy: OBRA Architects
In a profession increasingly shaped by surface-level imagery and fragmented workflows, Fan’s comprehensive, design-led representational practice is rare. It enables continuity from sketch to construction and ensures that every visual output—whether built or unbuilt—is an accurate extension of architectural thinking. For Fan, seeing the structure isn’t a metaphor. It’s how design happens.
Disclaimer: This article is intended for informational and editorial purposes only. The views and statements expressed reflect the experience and perspective of the subject at the time of publication. Project outcomes, design strategies, and methodologies mentioned are presented as part of a professional portfolio and should not be interpreted as endorsements, guarantees, or generalized claims. Readers are encouraged to independently verify any details relevant to their own professional or academic interests.
