How do you continue a conversation that began by circling a square? When we launched CONG in 2024, we set out to explore how disciplines often kept apart – art, architecture, design, placemaking and philosophy – might meet in the shared spaces of contemporary Asia.  With CONG 002, we carry this idea forward, seeking new connections between thought and form, and between places that shape and are shaped by cultural life. The issue asks how intelligence and imagination come into being through the spaces, systems, and surfaces of contemporary life – from the architectures of cities to the emotional grammars of algorithms, with a focus on Asia’s dynamic urban landscapes, especially Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Bangkok.

Published by Serakai, a forward-thinking property investor led by a distinctive philosophy of placemaking, CONG is structured to reflect the increasingly conductive and cohesive approach to creativity seen in contemporary culture. It is an independent annual that serves as a platform for critical minds and cultural protagonists to lead an evolving creative exchange of enduring influence. Through Serakai's lens of interconnected urbanism, CONG aims to act as a conceptual gateway to everything Serakai has to offer.