Still, I do have people I turn to before that point… I’ll send my ideas or images to a friends group chat or I ask my boyfriend, you know? Also, my dad has always been such an important figure in my life, and still is. He’s probably the most knowledgeable person I know.

My mother made the same brilliant impression upon my childhood's eye. She shone for me like the Evening Star. I loved her dearly—but at a distance. My nurse was my confidante. Mrs. Everest it was who looked after me and tended all my wants. It was to her I poured out my many troubles, both now and in my schooldays.

It’s been amazing to be able to spend so much time with her. I’ve joined a couple of tours last year and I’m going to visit her in Denver soon. And that sense of trust we were talking about, I mean, she really pushes me to do anything I want to do. She’s really helping to instill a new kind of confidence in me, whether that’s collaborating with a certain musician or visual artist, or indulging in a different style of improvisation…

Yes, I’m part of the Rolex mentoring programme for the 2023-2024 season, and my mentor, the architect Anne Lacaton, is actually the one who suggested I should do a project here. I explained in my application about how much influence it’s had on me, so she told me we should take advantage of this time together and work on something in my hometown. Her guidance has been so crucial, especially because I have such strong personal ties to the area, she’s been extremely helpful in reminding me of what my role is as an architect.

about 95% of the experiments we do are total failures, and that’s because we’re out there on the leading edge of what’s possible, and most of the time it isn’t quite possible.