Gloria Lau
I am a landscape architect, urban designer, visual artist, and writer. This site is an evolving documentation of my growth. More about me


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I am a designer and visual artist with roots in Hong Kong and California. My professional experience in landscape architecture and urban planning focuses on public space, resilient infrastructure, and community-centered design. As a visual artist, I merge art and archival research to explore the interplay of urban and natural landscape and the interlinks between spatial systems, culture, and identity. I have led supervisory and management roles professionally and has partnered with various socially engaged organizations as advisor, graphic designer, and event curator.
I have 13+ years of experience managing public space and urban design projects in New York City and San Francisco. I am also the co-founder of Laudi CoLab and Sunken Press – art collaboratives that document and illustrate undervalued stories in the built environment.


Applying my design, research, and event management skills, I have partnered with various organizations to create physical and digital spaces for conversations on diversity, equity, and community-led initiatives. I have worked closely with community groups to implement projects that fit their goals and build their capacity. The list below shows some of my current and past partnerships.




Fellowship and Residency
    Create Change Fellow. Laundromat Project. 2023.

    Bandung Residency. Asian American Arts Alliance and The Museum of Contemporary Diasporan Arts. 2022.

    Year 8 Cohort. NEW INC. New Museum. 2021-2022.

    Forefront Fellowship: Turning the Heat. Urban Design Forum. 2019-2020.



    Exhibits and Publications
    God’s Garage. Published in Urban Omnibus. 2023.

    99 cents & Up & Up. Data x Design Ground Truth Exhibit. 2022.  

    Industrial Chinatowns. 
    • Sound about Riso. 2022.
    • Hindsight Conference Virtual Exhibit . 2021

    Film Territory: New York’s Expanding Production Studios. Published in Urban Omnibus . 2015


    Partnership + CollaborationNew City Parks. Design Advisory Committee. 2021-Present.

    Urban Design Forum
    • Streets Ahead: Care Working Group. 2022.

    Diversity Committee (DivComm) of American Planning Association New York Metro Chapter
    • Core Leadership and Design Coordinator. 2017-2020.
      (DivComm was awarded the Karen B. Smith Award for Outstanding Service to Members by American Planning Association and Floyd Lapp Award for service by the APA NYM Chapter in 2019)

    Open Architecture New York
    • Director of Projects. 2018-2021.
    • Project Coordinator. 2014-2017.

    Kensington-Windsor Terrace Mutual Aid. 2020-Present.

    Street Lab / the Uni Project. Advisory Panel. 2018-2020.

    American Society of Landscape Architects


    Conference PlanningPlanning Committee. Hindsight. New York City.
    • Re-emergence Re-Imagine. 2021.
    • Our Health, Our Future. 2020.
    • Erasure. Remembrance. Healing. 2019.
    • 50th Anniversary of the Fair Housing Act. 2018.
    • 100th Anniversary of Buchanan v. Warley (1917). 2017.

    Planning Committee. Annual APA/ASLA/AIA New York Conference. New York City.
    (Awarded the Floyd Lapp Award for service by the APA NYM Chapter in 2020 for my effort)
    • At Every Scale. 2020.
    • The Big Picture: Large-Scale Developments in NYC. 2019.
    • Designing a Carbon Neutral New York. 2018.
    • Public Spaces. Social Movements. 2017.


    Licensure + CertificationRegistered Landscape Architect (New York State)
    American Institute Certified Planner



    Education
    University of Pennsylvania
    • Master of Landscape Architecture
    • Master of City Planning

    Cornell University
    • Bachelor of Urban and Regional Studies

    Laudi CoLab
    Sunken Press
    Instagram
    gloriakwlau@gmail.com