Xuezhen (Esther) Xie

Xuezhen (Esther) Xie is graduating from Cornell University with dual degrees in Urban and Regional Studies and Landscape Architecture. Esther is passionate about practicing design at various scales and combining her research interests with practical work. 

Esther is completing an honors thesis, "Fluid Boundary: Shenzhen River as a Third Territory." Her thesis investigates the river as both a boundary and a narrative, speculating the materiality of the border between the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China and Shenzhen (Mainland China), to convey the history of the frontier area and to envision its future transformation. Her design proposal aims to overcome the binary of water and land and works to situate Shenzhen River as a third territory with a fluid narrative.

While at Cornell, she studied abroad at DIS Copenhagen in Denmark, as well as in Rome through the Cornell in Rome program. This past year, she received the Student Award of Merit from the American Association of Landscape Architects.