MAD Architects has presented three three major new works at Milan Design Week 2021 which opened to the public on 5 September in Milan, Italy. 

One of the installations of MAD includes a large-scale art installation, called “Freedom” in the courtyard of the Università degli Studi di Milano. The installation is made of a yellow-colored seabird gazing towards the sky, preparing to soar into the air and take fight.

According to MAD, the seabird intends to create a symbol of our collective aspiration to restart and renew our lives and societies in the post-pandemic world.

Other two works of MAD include "Meteor," Ma’s interpretation of Dior’s iconic Medallion Chair, presented at Palazzo Citterio, and Gu Table, a collaboration with Sawaya & Moroni, building on their previous work together on the Gu Chair. 

Image © Romina Carpentieri

Ma Yansong explains the work as a metaphor of freedom, saying, "As human beings, if we are looking for freedom or connection with other people, we should go beyond physical or invisible space that limits us. We should go beyond the limitations."

Image © Romina Carpentieri

This year, MAD Architects was invited by Interni magazine to create a powerful and striking installation within the courtyard of the Università Degli Studi di Milano. 

Image © MAD Architects

Image © Romina Carpentieri

Image © Romina Carpentieri

The seabird installation is made of metallic profiles created by Eurostands, covered with LED stripes provided by Ledvance that allow the installation to glow at night. 

Half sheltered and half exposed, under the courtyard’s arches, the installation recalls the uncertainty that people have faced throughout the pandemic.

MAD's Fenix Museum of Migration in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Image courtesy of MAD.

MAD explains that "Seabird represents freedom, borderless, and inclusiveness." 

It also appears in MAD’s project – the Fenix Museum of Migration. It is MAD’s first cultural project in Europe and will be completed in 2025.

Meteor Chair. Image © Ken Ngan, courtesy of Dior

MAD's second work is "Meteor" at this Milano Design Week. Invited by Dior Maison, Ma Yansong reinterpreted one of Dior’s signature pieces: the Medallion Chair. 

The work, titled “Meteor,” is unveiled at Palazzo Citterio, on the occasion of Milan Design Week 2021.

Gu chair. Image courtesy of MAD Architects.

Ma’s reimagining of the chair transports this iconic design into the future. Traveling through time, the chair is caught in motion. 

Recast in monochrome 3d-printed polyurethane, the work reflects ma’s artistic and architectural ethos, blending nature and structure to generate an emotional connection. This imaginative and innovative approach is also emblematic of MAD’s creative practice.

Meteor Chair. Image © Ken Ngan, courtesy of Dior

Across scale and typology, Ma transcends time by conceiving works imbued with spiritual resonance from nature. 

In so doing, Ma animates aesthetic reflections with philosophical explorations of time and space, probing new conceptual horizons to achieve a harmonious balance.

Gu Table. Image © Sawaya & Moroni

MAD's other design is "Gu Table" which is strongly tied to the Gu Chair project presented in the 2018 Milan Design Week. Gu Table has emerged as a new collaboration with the Italian furniture brand Sawaya & Moroni. 

Gu Table. Image © Sawaya & Moroni

The design of Gu Table and Gu Chair draw reference from skeletal structures (“gu” translates to “bones” in Chinese). Both works appear to be in constant movement, with sinuous, fluid limbs that act as an extension of the human body and natural landscape. 

The wood’s veining emphasizes its sculptural form. The components seamlessly blend together to shape it as a continuously growing organism.

The 60th Edition of the Milano Design Week is being held between September 5-10, 2021 at Fiera Milano, Rho with the theme of "Beauty".

Project facts

"Freedom" design team: Ma Yansong, Dang Qun, Yosuke Hayano, Andrea D’Antrassi, Alessandro Fisalli, Elena Bellocchio, Francesco Nardacci

Location: Cortile d’Onore, Università degli Studi di Milano

"Meteor" design team: Ma Yansong, Dang Qun, Yosuke Hayano, Zeng Hao

Location: Palazzo Citterio, Via Brera 12, Milano, Italy

"Gu Table" design team: Ma Yansong, Dang Qun, Yosuke Hayano, Andrea D'Antrassi, Anna Spaggiari 

Location: Sawaya & Moroni gallery, Via Clerici, 1 Milano, Italy

Top image © Romina Carpentieri

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