(01)
LUNAR FRONTIER
Scope:
SPECULATIVE ENVIRONMENT / WORLD-BUILDING / SPATIAL RESEARCH
Status:ACADEMIC
Year:2025
Constructing another world through the systems that make habitation possible.
THE SCALE AT WHICH WE DESIGN.
My work moves between spatial design and environmental research, examining how environments are perceived, constructed, measured, and transformed at the scale of human experience.
01
SELECTED WORK
2023—2026(02)
MEMENTO
Scope:
EXPERIMENTAL SPACE / SPATIAL EXPERIENCE / BORDER
Status:ACADEMIC
Year:2024
Reconstructing the boundary as a spatial archive of movement, time, and memory.
(03)
BREATH, BREATH, BREATH!
Scope:
ADAPTIVE ENVIRONMENT / SPATIAL SET / COMMUNITY STAGE
Status:COMPETITION
Year:2023
A heritage structure reimagined as an open framework for gathering, movement, and everyday performance.
(04)
TRON KIRK
Scope:
INTERIOR / SPATIAL EXPERIENCE
Status:INTERIOR
Year:2024
An interior intervention shaped through light, material, proportion, and the choreography of movement.
(05)
XR RECYCLE
Scope:
XR INSTALLATION / PHYGITAL / INTERACTIVE
Status:BUILT PROTOTYPE
Year:2025
A recycling bin restaged as a multiplayer mixed-reality performance — sensors, game engines, and 3D-printed rewards closing the loop.
(06)
IN THE WIND
Scope:
SPATIAL ENVIRONMENT / SET DESIGN / EXPERIENTIAL
Status:SET DESIGN
Year:2023
A spatial environment shaped by an invisible performer: wind — an existing structure reimagined as a living set between mountain and sea.
(07)
WOAW GALLERY
Scope:
GALLERY INTERIOR / ADAPTIVE REUSE / EXHIBITION
Status:BUILT
Year:2023
A raw concrete stage for rotating shows — a built gallery whose steel insertions and movable furniture let every exhibition redress the same space.
02
ABOUT
WORKING
BETWEEN
DESIGN
&
RESEARCH
SPATIAL PRACTICE
EFFA LU
SPATIAL DESIGNER
DESIGN / RESEARCH / NARRATIVE ENVIRONMENTS
Effa Lu is a Los Angeles–based spatial designer working across architecture, scenography, production design, installation, and environmental research.
Trained in environmental design and architecture across Hong Kong and Edinburgh, she is currently pursuing graduate study at UCLA, where her work extends into environmental and spatial research.
Her practice moves between design and research, examining how environments are perceived, constructed, measured, and transformed through space, material, atmosphere, and human experience.
Her previous experience includes architectural practice at Gensler Hong Kong, RSP Architects, and BEAU Architects. She is also a co-founder of Exl Studio ↗.
03
PROFILE
EDUCATION
2025—27
UCLA
Graduate Study in Urban Design & Production Design
2021—25
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
B.A. (Hons) Environment Design & Architecture · First Class Honours
2024
The University of Edinburgh
Architecture / Interior Architecture Exchange Study
EXPERIENCE
Exl Studio
Co-Founder · Spatial Design
Gensler — Hong Kong
Architecture Intern · 2024
RSP Architects — Shanghai
Architecture & Urban Planning Assistant · 2024
BEAU Architects — Hong Kong
Architecture Intern · 2023
SELECTED RECOGNITION
Best Thesis Award · PolyU School of Design · 2025
UIA HYP Cup · Finalist · 2025
Asia Young Designer Awards · Gold Award · 2024
PolyU Presidential Student Leadership Award · 2024
HKSAR Government Scholarship Fund · Talent Development Scholarship · 2024
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
PolyU School of Design ShowJockey Club Innovation Tower · Hong Kong, China · 2025
The Global Research in Design Innovation ExhibitionJockey Club Innovation Tower · Hong Kong, China · 2024
SJTU-SD-4C Challenge · Award-winning Works DisplayShanghai Jiao Tong University · Shanghai, China · 2023
SELECTED RESEARCH & PUBLICATIONS
Enhancing Urban Vitality through Interactive XR Installations: Fostering Engagement and Environmental Awareness ↗Lu, X. · Bao, H. · Lo, T.
CAAD Futures 2025 · Conference Proceedings · pp. 359–374
TOOLS & METHODS
SPATIAL DESIGNRhino · Grasshopper · AutoCAD · SketchUp
VISUALIZATIONPhotoshop · Illustrator · InDesign · Unity · Unreal Engine
COMPUTATIONPython · GIS · Environmental Simulation
MAKINGHand Drawing · Model Making