Ma Yansong has come to represent a new generation of Chinese architects shaping a forward-looking architecture. Founder of the firm MAD Architects, Yansong was the first Chinese architect to receive a RIBA fellowship. Today, Ma continues to explore contemporary architecture that's grounded in traditional Eastern values of nature, bridging design between the East and West. His latest TED Talk explores his new projects and surreal designs.
As TED states, "Taking inspiration from nature, architect Ma Yansong designs breathtaking buildings that break free from the boxy symmetry of so many modern cities. His exuberant and graceful work -- from a pair of curvy skyscrapers that "dance" with each other to an opera house that looks like a snow-capped mountain -- shows us the beauty of architecture that defies norms." Ma finds important inspiration for his architectural designs from traditional Chinese and Japanese methods. His focus is on the experience of space and its relationship to form.
While the projects often come across as futuristic, the designs are tied to contextual roots in nature, landscape and the changing perceptions of place. They are expressions of continuity between the natural world and built environments. As Ma Yansong explains, modern cities and buildings are often made to “deal with efficiency, the function, the structure. There's no nature. People love to go closer to nature and other people, so we need to create environments that let people have these emotional connections."
