Speaking to CNN ahead of Tuesday’s announcement, the founder of one of China’s first private architecture firms reflects on a career designing unpretentious buildings in an era of excess.

Pritzker Architecture Prize has been awarded to Liu Jiakun of China, who earned the field’s highest honor for “affirming architecture that celebrates the lives of ordinary citizens.”

The Chinese architect just won the highest honor in architecture for his thoughtful approach to density and public spaces. Across the city of Chengdu, China, the quiet but remarkable buildings of Liu Jiakun have slowly pierced through the dominant stereotype of bombastic Chinese architecture.