Emy Louie, AIA

by Heather Livingston
Contributing Editor

Summary: Emy Louie, AIA, is a leading expert in the field of Feng Shui architecture. Born in Hong Kong, raised and educated in Hawaii, and now head of a Feng Shui consulting firm in Raleigh, Louie is the author of numerous publications on Feng Shui and architecture. She hosts “The Emy Louie Show,” a live international radio talk show that explores Feng Shui, architecture, and other related disciplines.

Educational background: I have a bachelor’s in architecture from the University of Hawaii.

Why you became an architect: I didn’t want to be a lawyer or doctor. I was a candy striper in high school and worked briefly in a hospital, and I didn’t like the sight of blood. In high school my sophomore year I got a 120 percent in geometry, which was unheard of. I also did very well in studio art, so that already gave me hints that I wanted to be an architect.

Professional influences: The first person I can think of is Frank Gehry. I’m still looking for somebody and I think, unfortunately, it could be myself because I’m paving a new path. The reason why I look to Gehry is because when I visited Bilbao in Spain, his work was very curvilinear. It melded the Modern with the more curvilinear aspects of indigenous buildings, such as the pueblos in Taos, New Mexico, where there weren’t any corners. A lot of adobe buildings don’t have corners. They replaster every several years, so Gehry’s work has that sense of not being orthogonal. A lot of International style buildings were about Euclidian geometry and being 90 degrees. Nature in itself is not generally 90 degrees. I don’t think trees operate in 90 degrees. They grow organically.

On the fusion of Feng Shui and architecture: It’s the next revolution to me. I feel like I’m 25 years ahead of my time. The revolution that is happening is probably 300 to 2-3,000 years in the making. We’re talking about a total shift in consciousness about our world [that] has to go back to pre-industrial revolution and enlightenment, the period of enlightenment.

The pyramid school [of Feng Shui] researches the psychology of space. Edward T. Hall was the grandfather of proxemics, the study of psychology of space. [He wrote] the first book I ever read in architecture school called The Hidden Dimension. We even did these distance exercises where at 45 feet we can see someone’s emotional expression, but beyond 45 feet, we can’t see a person’s expression. Therefore, our experience of someone in that space will be dramatically different, so these determinants of space based on Hall’s scientific observations determine how we build buildings because of the distances. If a building is too large or a space is too large, it’s not going to promote certain human interactions.

Pyramid school Feng Shui really melds all of these research data based on Edward T. Hall and jumps ahead and looks at the very holistic view on how we design spaces. A building is specific based on who you are, how old you are, your cultural background, where you’ve traveled, probably even your own beliefs and religious background. The Japanese look at space versus looking at objects. It’s similar to looking at the synapse versus the nerve cell: looking at the void versus looking at what you see as an object. Feng Shui goes both ways. It looks at what’s not there as well as what’s there.

Favorite places: I had one of my most enlightening experiences when I was in Capri, Italy. I don’t know if it was the air. Maybe it was just the way I was feeling. The ocean was so blue, azure. I grew up in Hawaii and I thought oceans were blue there. Hawaii is very beautiful, no doubt. You’re getting the amenities of a first-world country and then the beauty of the world, so not only is it naturally extremely beautiful, but Hawaii is also very accessible in that you can get all your modern day luxuries and conveniences too.

Current read: Actually, currently I’m reading a very controversial book. It’s called Vice: Dick Cheney and the Hijacking of the American Presidency by Lou Dubose.

Hobbies: The last six months I’ve taken up beading, which I find is very fascinating. What I love about beading is that you can restring it tomorrow or next year or never restring it and give it as an heirloom to your children.

Other hobbies: I like to go jogging. I jog like I go to sleep. I just think it’s a normal thing to do. In the past, I ran two marathons. For exercising it’s just a matter of set points. If you’re used to a certain lifestyle where you’re exercising and then you’re not doing it, you just don’t feel right. I try to sweat everyday, at least five times a week. I think sweating is very important: exerting some energy—your own energy. And then reading has always been my hobby throughout my life. Otherwise, I love to travel as I can.

Greatest achievement: Actually right now, having the radio show. That would be my greatest achievement because up until now, I’ve been preparing and I never knew that I was preparing for this radio show. [After reading] Now: Discover your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham, I finally realized I had a student archetype. I always wanted to learn and if I wasn’t learning I wasn’t being my true self. We all have combinations of universal personality traits and one of mine is a learner: always asking questions, asking why. Now, as a radio show host, I get to ask [questions] a lot and to different people.

Best practice tip: This might be really hard for people to do, but if they’re not happy in their job and they’re doing it for the money: Quit the job and do something that they really like to do and don’t be afraid. You’ve got to chase your own dreams.

Don’t chase somebody else’s dream. Don’t chase Norman Foster’s dream. Chase your own dream.