Ma Yansong ( zh, t=马岩松, p=Mǎ Yánsōng); is the principal architect and founder of MAD Architects, a global design practice with offices located in Los Angeles, Rome, and Beijing. Renowned for his bold designs, Ma has led MAD in the creation of many significant structures around the world, including the Lucas Museum of Narrative Arts, Harbin Opera House, Quzhou Stadium, FENIX Museum, The Yue Cheng Courtyard Kindergarten, Jiaxing Train Station, Shenzhen Bay Culture Park, One River North, and the Tunnel of Light. His design approach emphasizes a harmonious integration of urban landscapes, natural elements, and human experiences. He shares his knowledge as an adjunct professor and visiting professor at

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture The Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture () is a municipal public university in Xicheng, Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 mil ...

and

Tsinghua University Tsinghua University (THU) is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Constructio ...

Early life and background

Ma Yansong was born in Beijing in 1975. He holds a Master's Degree in Architecture from

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

and a Bachelor's Degree from the

. He is currently a professor at the Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture. During his master's degree at Yale, he first received attention for his project "Floating Islands". Ma Yansong founded MAD Architects in 2004.

Design philosophy: Shanshui City

The famous Chinese scientist

Qian Xuesen Qian Xuesen ( zh, s=钱学森; December 11, 1911October 31, 2009; also spelled as Tsien Hsue-shen) was a Chinese aerospace engineer and cyberneticist who made significant contributions to the field of aerodynamics and established engineering ...

proposed the concept of " Shanshui City" in the 1980s. Because of the emerging large-scale cement construction, he put forward a new model of urban development based on the Chinese Shanshui spirit, which was meant to allow people to "stay out of nature and return to nature." However, this idealistic urban concept was not put into practice. As the world's largest manufacturing base, a large number of soulless "shelf cities" appeared in contemporary China due to the lack of cultural spirit. Qian Xuesen pointed out that modern cities' worship of power and capital leads to maximization and utilitarianism. "Buildings in cities should not become living machines. Even the most powerful technology and tools can never endow the city with a soul." To Ma Yansong, Shanshui does not just refer to nature; it is also the individual's emotional response to the surrounding world. "Shanshui City" is a combination of city density, functionality, and the artistic conception of natural landscape. It aims at composing a future city that takes human spirit and emotion at their cores.

Signature Projects

Architecture

* Absolute Towers,

Mississauga Mississauga is a Canadian city in the province of Ontario. Situated on the north-western shore of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, it borders Toronto (Etobicoke) to the east, Brampton to the north, Milton to the northwest, ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada, 2006–2012, completed **''Best Tall Buildings Americas,

CTBUH The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) is an international body in the field of tall buildings, including skyscrapers, and sustainable urban design. A non-profit organization based at the Monroe Building in Chicago, Illinois, U ...

"Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat"
'' **''No.1, Skyscraper Awards 2012,

EMPORIS Emporis was a real estate data mining company with headquarters in Hamburg, Germany. The company collected data and photographs of buildings worldwide, which were published in an online database from 2000 to September 2022. Emporis was acquired ...

.
'' **
Building of the Year
2012, ArchDaily.'' * Ordos Museum, Ordos,

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, 2005–2011, completed **''Best Museum, UED'' **'' Winner of "Metal in Architecture", WAN Awards, 2014'' *Hongluo Clubhouse,

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

, China, 2005–2006, completed *Sino-steel International Plaza,

Tianjin Tianjin is a direct-administered municipality in North China, northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the National Central City, nine national central cities, with a total population of 13,866,009 inhabitants at the time of the ...

, China, 2006 *Huangdu Art Center, Beijing, China, 2008 * Hutong Bubble 32, Beijing, China, 2008–2009, completed *Fake Hills,

Beihai Beihai (; Postal romanization: Pakhoi) is a prefecture-level city in the south of Guangxi, People's Republic of China. Its status as a seaport on the north shore of the Gulf of Tonkin has granted it historical importance as a port of internati ...

, China 2008–2015, under construction **''Best Architecture Multiple Residence
International Property Awards
' * Harbin Opera House,

Harbin Harbin, ; zh, , s=哈尔滨, t=哈爾濱, p=Hā'ěrbīn; IPA: . is the capital of Heilongjiang, China. It is the largest city of Heilongjiang, as well as being the city with the second-largest urban area, urban population (after Shenyang, Lia ...

, China, 2008–2015, completed *Taichung Convention Center,

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

, 2009 *Harbin China Wood Sculpture Museum, Harbin, China, 2009–2012, completed *Huangshan Mountain Village,

Huangshan Huangshan ( zh, s=黄山),Bernstein, pp. 125–127. literally meaning the Yellow Mountain(s), is a mountain range in southern Anhui province in eastern China. It was originally called "Yishan", and it was renamed because of a legend that Em ...

, China, 2009–2016, under construction **''2012 Top 10 Conceptual Architecture,

Designboom ''Designboom'' (stylized as ''designboom'') is a daily web magazine headquartered in Milan and covering the fields of industrial design, architecture, and art internationally. History Launched in 1999, the publication was the first web magazin ...

'' *Urban Forest,

Chongqing ChongqingPostal Romanization, Previously romanized as Chungking ();. is a direct-administered municipality in Southwestern China. Chongqing is one of the four direct-administered municipalities under the State Council of the People's Republi ...

, China, 2009 *National Art Museum of China, Beijing, China, 2011 *Pingtan Art Museum, Pingtan, China, 2011–2016 *Chaoyang Park Mixed-use, Beijing, China, 2013–2016 **''D21 Chinese Architecture Design in 21st Century, Beijing Design Week'' **''Chinese Top 10 Buildings'' *Nanjing Zendai Himalayas Center,

Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...

, China, 2013–2017 *

Vertu Vertu (stylised VERTU) is a manufacturer and retailer of luxury handmade mobile phones, established in 1998 and formerly owned by Finnish mobile phone manufacturer Nokia. Previously located in the UK, ownership of the brand is now contes ...

, travelling Pavilion, Milan, Shanghai, Dubai, Beijing, London *Beijing 2050, Beijing, China *Rebuilt WTC, New York, USA *800m Tower, China *Changsha Culture Park,

Changsha Changsha is the capital of Hunan, China. It is the 15th most populous city in China with a population of 10,513,100, the Central China#Cities with urban area over one million in population, third-most populous city in Central China, and the ...

, China *KBH Kunsthal, Urban intervention,

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

Lucas Museum of Narrative Art The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is a museum founded by filmmaker George Lucas and his wife, businesswoman Mellody Hobson. Once completed, the museum will hold all forms of visual storytelling, including painting, photography, sculpture, illus ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, USA

Art

* Shanshui - Experiment - Complex,

Shenzhen Shenzhen is a prefecture-level city in the province of Guangdong, China. A Special economic zones of China, special economic zone, it is located on the east bank of the Pearl River (China), Pearl River estuary on the central coast of Guangdong ...

, China, 2013 *Moon Landscape, Beijing, China, 2013 *"Shanshui City" Exhibition, Beijing, China, 2013 *"Shansui City" fo
Audi City
Beijing, China *The Little Rock Fountain Journal *"The Floating Earth" for Alessi *Contemplating the Void in Guggenheim, New York, USA, 2009 *Feelings are facts, Beijing, China, 2010 *Monster's Footprint, Shenzhen, China, 2009 *Superstar: A Mobile Chinatown (Uneternal City),

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

, Italy, 2008 *Ink Ice, Beijing, China *Fish Tank

Awards and honors

*2018 Prix Versailles World JudgePrix Versailles website
/ref> *2014 100 Most Creative People in Business,

Fast Company ''Fast Company'' is an American business magazine published monthly in print and online, focusing on technology, business, and design. It releases six print issues annually. History ''Fast Company'' was founded in November 1995 by Alan Webb ...

*2014 Chaoyang Park Plaza: Chinese Top 10 Buildings *2014 Sheraton Huzhou Hot Spring Resort: No.3, Skyscraper Awards 2013, EMPORIS *2013 Designer of the Year,

Good Design The Good Design movement was an artistic movement or design concept that originated in the 1930s, but took form principally in the United States immediately after the Second World War. Designs made under the influence of Good Design include buil ...

*2013 D21 Young Chinese Architect Award *2013 Emporis for the world's best new skyscraper (Absolute Towers) *2013 2n
Audi Arts and Design Award
in the category Designer of the Year *2012 The Best New High-rise Building in the America's by the CTBUH "Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat", (Absolute Towers) *2012 International Property Awards (Fake Hills) *2011 UED museum award (Ordos Museum) *2011 RIBA International Fellowship *2011 Fast Company – one of 10 most innovative companies in China *2009 Fast Company – one of 10 creative people in architecture *2008 ICON magazine – one of 20 most influential young architects *2006 Architecture League Young Architects Award *2001 American Institute of Architects Scholarship for Advanced Architecture Research

Exhibitions

*2014 Shanshui City Exhibition, Solo Exhibition,

Ullens Center for Contemporary Art UCCA Center for Contemporary Art or UCCA () is a leading Chinese independent institution of contemporary art. Founded in 2007 and located at the heart of the 798 Art District in Beijing, China, it welcomes more than one million visitors a year. ...

(UCCA), Beijing, China *2014 “The Changing Skyline”, Beijing Design Week, Beijing, China *2014 “Future Cities — High Mountain, Flowing Water” China Shan-Shui City Design Exhibition,

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

*2014 Building M+: The Museum and Architecture Collection,

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

, China *2013 Shenzhen & Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture,

, China *2013 West Bund 2013: A Biennial of Architecture and Contemporary Art,

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

, China *2013 Palace of China – Architecture China 2013 exhibition,

Segovia Segovia ( , , ) is a city in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León, Spain. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the Province of Segovia. Segovia is located in the Meseta central, Inner Pl ...

, Spain *2013 Shanshui City Exhibition, Solo Exhibition, Beijing, China *2012 Between the Modernity and Tradition, Solo Exhibition, ICO Museum, Madrid, Spain *2011 Shenzhen & Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism\Architecture, Shenzhen, China *2011 Beijing Design week, Beijing, China *2011
Chengdu Biennale
Changing Vistas: Creative Duration,

Chengdu Chengdu; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, previously Romanization of Chinese, romanized as Chengtu. is the capital city of the Chinese province of Sichuan. With a ...

, China *2011 Living, The Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Copenhagen Denmark *2011 Verso Est: Chinese Architectural Landscape,

MAXXI MAXXI (, 'national museum of 21st-century arts') is a national museum of contemporary art and architecture in the Flaminio neighborhood of Rome, Italy. The museum is managed by a foundation created by the Italian Ministry of Culture. The buildi ...

, Rome, Italy *2010 Rising East: New Chinese Architecture,

Vitra Design Museum The Vitra Design Museum is a privately owned museum for design in Weil am Rhein, Germany. The architect of this building was Frank O. Gehry. His architecture was based on the art movement of the early 20th century, deconstructivism. Making the bu ...

Weil am Rhein Weil am Rhein (, ; High Alemannic German, High Alemannic: ''Wiil am Rhii'') is a German town and commune. It is on the east bank of the River Rhine, and extends to the tripoint of Switzerland, France, and Germany. It is the most southwesterly tow ...

, Germany *2010 Feelings Are Facts,

Olafur Eliasson Olafur Eliasson (; born 5 February 1967) is an Icelandic–Danish artist known for sculptured and large-scaled installation art employing elemental materials such as light, water, and air temperature to enhance the viewer's experience. In 1995, ...

+Ma Yansong, UCCA, Beijing, China *2009 Contemplating the Void: Interventions in the

Guggenheim Museum The Guggenheim Museums are a group of museums in different parts of the world established (or proposed to be established) by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation. Museums in this group include: * The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, Ne ...

, New York, USA *2008 Super Star, A Mobile China Town, Uneternal City, 11th Venice Architecture Exhibition, Italy *2008 China Design Now,

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

, London, UK *2007 MAD IN CHINA, solo exhibition,

Danish Architecture Centre Danish Architecture Center ( Danish: Dansk Arkitektur Center), (DAC), is Denmark’s national center for the development and dissemination of knowledge about architecture, building and urban development. DAC’s objective and legitimacy consist i ...

(DAC),

*2006 Shanghai Art Biennale, Shanghai, China *2006 MAD IN CHINA, Solo exhibition, Diocesi Museum, Venice, Italy *2006 MAD Under Construction, Solo Exhibition, Tokyo Gallery, Beijing, China *2004 1st Architecture Biennial Beijing,

National Art Museum of China The National Art Museum of China (NAMOC; ) is the national art museum of China and one of the largest art museums in the nation. Located in Beijing and opened since 1963, it is a level-1 public welfare institution funded by the Ministry of Cultur ...

, Beijing, China

Quotes

RIBA ''Riba'' (, or , ) is an Arabic word used in Islamic law and roughly translated as " usury": unjust, exploitative gains made in trade or business. ''Riba'' is mentioned and condemned in several different verses in the Qur'an3:130

President Ruth Reed, in the jury report for the 201
RIBA international Fellowship
“Ma Yansong is a young Chinese architect – just 35 – who has come to architectural maturity at a time when his country is beginning to allow the freedom of expression so vital to the artist and sufficient freedom to the economy to allow his ideas to be realized as buildings. His work expresses the tension between the individual imagination and the needs of society as a whole."

References

External links

*
i-Mad
' {{DEFAULTSORT:Ma, Yansong Chinese architects Artists from Beijing Living people 1975 births 21st-century Chinese architects Yale School of Architecture alumni