fish tank

source: designboom

earlier this month, designboom visited beijing’s headquarters of MAD architects. the studio is representing the avant-garde of a new generation of homegrown chinese talent. the architects examine and develop a unique concept of futurism, exploring a renewed understanding of nature and advanced technology. MAD define architecture as a man-made symbiosis, in harmony with nature, giving people the freedom to develop their own independent urban experience.

‘actually we treat people the same way as fish – they have to feel the space.’ – ma yansong, one of the 3 principals and founder of MAD architects says. MAD architects started in 2004 and one of their first works was a fish tank. the project won the young architects award in new york and was exhibited at the beijing architectural biennale and featured in the national art museum of china the same year. the fish tank experiment maybe illustrates best the ongoing research of the architects. a similar concept can be seen in some of their most recent works, among them the erdos museum in inner mongolia, which is currently nearing completion.

‘we tracked the movement trajectory of fish that live in a non organized, open space. different from human being’s living space, the fish world is relatively free of gravity restriction. this data of fish movement trajectory was the initial driving force for our design strategy in maximizing and optimizing the usage of limited space. our morphogenesis design process analyzed the trajectories in a 3-dimensional space and it showed a high frequency of fish movement around the edges. hence smoothing edges became our experimental objective. the external surface is ‘strained’ inwards and connects with other external surfaces. the internal and the external space are dynamically related and create an ambiguous space.’ – ma yansong

‘the erdos museum is located in a city that is currently being built in a place where there was nothing but the gobi desert. the municipal government of erdos has created an urban masterplan, entitled ‘ever rising sun on the grass land’. the erdos museum will be created at the centre of this new city. our concept is a reflection and a reaction to the masterplan. the design is a natural, irregular nucleus, to contrast with the planned city; to provide interior scenery completely separate to that which is outside. the museum is wrapped in reflective metal louvers. the surface of the museum thus reflects and fragments the surroundings.’ – ma yangsong
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source: mad

With a deliberate focus through a variety of projects, MAD has obtained a unique insight in how buildings best can release their full potential in close relation with their surroundings.

Made useful to humans by urban understanding

Just like you and I, buildings are social beings. And just like us, architecture cannot live and prosper unless it relates to its environment. We strive towards our ideal of creating architecture that adapts while maintaining personality and character; that blends in by standing out!

By recognizing the most important factors of each site’s urban fabric and social implications, MAD has cultivated the art of conveying this abstract essence into a formal response, maintaining both the building itself and its relationship to its context – be it a small infill-project in a crowded street or large buildings as part of an extensive transformation.

Because no matter which size, scale or situation, the bottom line is always the same: A building’s main purpose is to be useful to humans. And we believe the key to achieving this, is urban understanding.
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source: mad

MAD’s advantage lies in the unquestionable benefits we get when a multitude of different talents harmonize and unite in a common vision.

Our aim is to create unique projects that evolve from the dynamic and creative group that is MAD: Our practice is the sum of the contributions from each employee, and the key is to encourage each architect to release their full potential as professional and creative individuals – and expect everyone to take on the responsibility that follows.

We are proud to have created a demanding and socially rich environment that is constantly reflected in the enduring quality of our projects.