On May 16, 2025, "Ma Yansong: Architecture and Emotion" debuted at the Nieuwe Instituut in the Netherlands. 

Through exhibitions, research, and public programming, the Nieuwe Instituut is the national museum for architecture, design, and digital culture in the Netherlands, and aims to explore the possibilities of novel concepts.

This exhibition marks MAD’s first solo show in the Netherlands. The show is presented by MAD in collaboration with the Nieuwe Instituut, under the direction of Ma Yansong, Dang Qun, and Yosuke Hayano. 

Aric Chen, the General and Artistic Director of the Nieuwe Instituut, along with Emily Wijns and Tijn van de Wijdeven, curated the exhibition.

Image © Demone

MAD was established in 2004 with the goal of continuously pushing the limits of modern architecture while rethinking the relationship between humans, nature, and the built environment. Through spatial design, MAD aims to produce emotionally stirring experiences and connections that transcend practicality.

Image © Demone

"The exhibition approaches MAD’s practice from multiple perspectives—from critiques of modernism and globalization to explorations of its design language; from domestic living and art installations to large-scale cultural and commercial projects—bringing viewers closer to the ideas and working methods of Ma Yansong and MAD," said Aric Chen, General and Artistic Director of the Nieuwe Instituut. 

"Through spatial presentations of architectural models, art, and multimedia, visitors will experience how MAD uses architecture to evoke emotion and respond to the environment," Chen added. 

Image © Demone

"We hope this exhibition brings viewers closer to MAD and offers insight into our work," said MAD principal Ma Yansong. 

"Through imagination, we’ve always sought to breathe new life and vitality into cities and architecture, encouraging people to re-examine their relationship with nature, time, and the world," Yansong explained. 

Image © Demone

The seven chapters that make up the exhibition's framework are each centered on a pivotal point in MAD's architectural practice and research: MAD in China, Absolute Towers, Shanshui City, Embodied Nature, Layered Futures, Connective Landscapes, MAD People.

The curators trace the development of MAD's design philosophy and the layered conceptual ideas that have shaped it through a thorough analysis of 27 architectural and artistic works.

Image © Arch Exist

The first chapter, MAD in China, presents seven early projects and publications—including Fish Tank, MAD Dinner, Beijing 2050, Floating Island: World Trade Center Reconstruction Proposal, 800-Meter Tower, Superstar: A Mobile China Town, and Feelings Are Facts. 

Together, these works reflect MAD’s bold and imaginative responses to the complex realities of urban development.

Image © Ossip van Duivenbode

Absolute Towers, the subject of the second chapter, is a historic project that was started in 2005 and completed in 2012. With this project, MAD became the first Chinese architectural firm to win a major construction competition held outside of China.

Image © Arch Exist

Shanshui City, the third chapter, explores the beginnings and development of MAD's basic design tenets, which are based on traditional Chinese landscape painting. 

The exhibition demonstrates how MAD incorporates the poetic sensibility of shanshui into modern architecture by constructing new spatial forms where nature and city coexist, as demonstrated by projects like Chaoyang Park Plaza, Guiyang Shanshui City Research, and UNIC in Paris.

Image © Demone

Six projects are included in the fourth chapter, Embodied Nature: Shenzhen Bay Culture Park, Quzhou Stadium, Ordos Museum, Cloudscape of Haikou, Urban Mirage, and Zuidas Complex in Amsterdam. 

When taken as a whole, these pieces examine how MAD reinterprets and defines the line separating the natural and constructed environments in architectural and urban settings.

Image © Arch Exist

The Ark (an adaptive reuse of a 10,000 square meters warehouse at Shanghai's Zhangjiang Cement Plant), Clover House in Japan, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, the Harbin Opera House, and the Fenix Museum in Rotterdam are the five projects featured in the fifth chapter, Layered Future. 

These pieces, each created in a unique urban and temporal setting, demonstrate MAD's broad imagination based on humanistic principles. An animated presentation that depicts MAD's multifaceted but condensed project discussions via WeChat is also included in the chapter.

Image © Ossip van Duivenbode

Five projects are shown in the sixth chapter, Connective Landscapes: the Tunnel of Light in Japan, Jiaxing Train Station, Baiziwan Social Housing, One River North in Denver, and Lecheng Courtyard Kindergarten. These pieces show how MAD's architecture integrates community, urban infrastructure, nature, and wider societal issues.

Image © Ossip van Duivenbode

The final section, MAD People, offers a video representation of the studio's internal culture, showcasing the many origins of the team and the importance of cross-cultural interpretation in fostering an energetic, transparent, and collaborative work atmosphere.

Image © Ossip van Duivenbode

Image © Ossip van Duivenbode

Image © Arch Exist

Image © Ossip van Duivenbode

Image © Demone

Image © Arch Exist

Image © Demone

Image © Demone

Image © Arch Exist

Image © Ossip van Duivenbode

Image © Arch Exist

Image © Arch Exist

Image © Ossip van Duivenbode

Image © Ossip van Duivenbode

Image courtesy of Nieuwe Instituut

Image © Arch Exist

Image courtesy of Nieuwe Instituut

Image © Arch Exist

Image © Demone

Visitors are invited to employ augmented reality (AR) technology in an interactive area to turn basic sketches into spatially volumetric designs. 

The Ma Yansong: Architecture and Emotion exhibition will be open until October 12, 2025.

Exhibition facts

Exhibition name: Ma Yansong: Architecture and Emotion
Duration: May 17 - October 12, 2025
Curators: Aric Chen, Tijn van de Wijdeven, Emily Wijns
Assistant Curator: Susanna Olmi
 
Spatial design and curatorial collaborators: MAD
Artistic Lead: MA Yansong, DANG Qun, Yosuke HAYANO
Exhibition team: Fiona Ql Ziying, SONG Jia, HUANG Juntao, Li Ran, JIANG Yunyao, Valentina OLIVIERI, HE Linxi, Tammy XIE Xiaozhang, LIU Danyang, WANG Manwei, ZHU Yuanlong.

Graphic Concept & Design: Joris Kritis with / met Emil Kowalczyk
Head of Programme: Flora van Gaalen
Production: Thomas Tawanda Orbon, Christie Bakker
Technical Production: Peer Thielen
Communications: Moetoesingi Schmidt, Petra van der Ree, Robin van Essel, Jaap Stronks, Keesje Heldoorn, Jessica Dohmen-Verboom, Qi Lin Braat
Technical Support: Bart Smits, Stefan Prins, Robin Menheere, Richard Blokdijk, Joe Ziemba
Co-learning: Linde Dorenbosch, Pia Canales, Joëlle Hoogendoorn, Tony Santos
Fundraising: Jacob de Munnik, Saskia Derksen
Art Direction Advisor: Maureen Mooren
Commissioned work: Aimée Theriot i.c.w / m.m.v Federica Notari
Copy editing: Jane Szita, Alexandra Onderwater
Dutch translation: Floris Dogterom
AI-developers: Casper Wortmann & Thomas Groenewegen
Exhibition construction: Bouwko Landstra & team, Antje Verstrate
Light Design: 50LUX
Graphic Production: SWOON sign & visual
Sponsors: Stichting Droom en Daad, Van Leeuwen Van Lignac Stichting, Stichting Verzameling van Wijngaarden-Boot, Abe Bonnema Stichting, Elise Mathilde fonds

The top image in the article © Ossip van Duivenbode. 

All images © Demone, Arch Exist, Ossip van Duivenbode.

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