Yabuli Entrepreneurs’ Congress Center, designed by MAD Architects, (commissioned by the Yabuli China Entrepreneurs Forum (Yabuli CEF), one of China’s most influential business organizations) is nearing completion, located in the snow-covered mountains of northeastern China.

November 18th to 20th saw the venue’s opening ceremony and its first event, the Yabuli CEF’s 20th annual conference, attended by over 600 entrepreneurs. The Yabuli CEF was founded in 2001, on the eve of China’s entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO), and has since become one of the most influential platforms for Chinese entrepreneurs.
The complex, commissioned to MAD Architects in 2017,  the project was envisioned as a building embedded in the mountain forest, and it evokes the concept of a tent sitting at the foot of a mountain, with its soft, curving, silver-white rooftop echoing the snow-capped hills surrounding it.

During the day, natural light sines through a large glass skylight. The wooden interior was made to create a warm interior as a space for large-scale conferences. At night, the same skylight allows a warm glow to soar from the building into the cold mountain forest, evoking the image of a campfire around which entrepreneurs share ideas, thoughts, and stories.

Inside, a blend of wooden walls and natural light creates a warm, soft atmosphere, while an outdoor public plaza and glass walkway allows users to experience the connection between architecture and nature. The Center includes an exhibition hall, meeting rooms, and a television hall as a space that's also open to the public.

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Architects
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MAD Architects. Principal partners in charge.- Ma Yansong, Dang Qun, Yosuke Hayano. Associate partners in charge.- Liu Huiying, Tiffany Dahlen.
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Project team
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Li Guangchong, Sun Shouquan, Deng Wei, Song Chi, Zhang Xiaomei, Huai Wei, Zhao Meng, Wang Shuobin, Zhang Yanru, Yuki Ishigami, Xiao Ying, Tian Jin.
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Collaborators
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Executive architects.- China architecture design & research group.
Façade consultant.- RFR Shanghai, Kighton façade consultant.
Landscape architects.- BJF international design.
Interior design consultant.- Shanghai Xian Dai Architectural Decoration & Landscape Design Research Institute co., ltd.
Lighting consultant.- Brandston Partnership inc.
Signage consultant.- Dongdao Creative Branding Group.
Acoustics consultant.- Beijing Tsinghua Tongheng Urban Planning & Design Institute.
LEED consultant.- AECOM Beijing.
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Client
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China Entrepreneur Forum.
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Measurements
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Site area.- 22,000 sqm.
Building area.- 16,198 sqm.
Building height.- 23.3 m.
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Dates
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2017-2020.
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Photography
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ArchExist, Agovision, CreateAR Images.
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mad is a Beijing-based architecture design office dedicated to creating innovative projects. Founded by Ma Yansong in 2004, MAD Architects is led by Ma Yansong, Dang Qun, and Yosuke Hayano. It is committed to developing futuristic, organic, technologically advanced designs that embody a contemporary interpretation of the Eastern affinity for nature. With a vision for the city of the future based on the spiritual and emotional needs of residents, MAD endeavours to create a balance between humanity, the city, and the environment.

MAD's projects encompass urban planning, urban complexes, municipal buildings, museums, theatres, concert halls, and housing, as well as art and design. Their projects are located in China, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, and the United States. In 2006, MAD won the design competition for the Absolute Towers in Mississauga, Canada. Through this, MAD became the first Chinese architecture firm to build a significant high-rise project abroad. In 2014, MAD was selected as the principal designer for the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles, USA, becoming the first China-based architecture firm to design an overseas cultural landmark. MAD’s signature cultural projects include Ordos Museum (2011, China), Harbin Opera House (2015, China), Tunnel of Light (2018, Japan), China Philharmonic Concert Hall (under construction), Yiwu Grand Theater (under construction), FENIX Museum of Migration in Rotterdam (under construction), Cloudscape of Haikou (2021, China), and Shenzhen Bay Culture Square (under construction). Other urban projects include the Clover House kindergarten (2015, Japan), Chaoyang Park Plaza (2017, China), China Entrepreneur Forum Conference Centre (2021, China), Jiaxing Train Station (under construction), Quzhou Sports Campus (under construction), and Nanjing Zendai Himalayas Center (under construction), among others.

While practising architecture, MAD documents and discusses its reflections on architecture, culture, and arts through publications, architectural exhibitions, as well as academic lectures and presentations. MAD’s publications include Mad Dinner, Bright City, MA YANSONG: From (Global) Modernity to (Local) Tradition, Shanshui City, and MAD X. MAD has organized and participated in several contemporary art and design exhibitions, including MAD X, a solo exhibition at the Centre Pompidou in 2019; Shanshui City, at UCCA in 2014; Feelings are Facts, a spatial experience exhibition with artist Ólafur Eliasson at UCCA in 2010; and MAD in China, a solo exhibition at the Danish Architectural Center, Copenhagen in 2007. MAD has participated in significant exhibitions at several iterations of the Venice Architecture Biennale and Milan Design Week. MAD has also participated in exhibitions at the Victoria and Albert Museum (London), the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art (Copenhagen), and MAXXI (Rome). An array of MAD’s architecture models have been acquired by the Centre Pompidou and M+ Museum (Hong Kong) as part of their permanent collections.

MAD has offices in Beijing (China), Jiaxing (China), Los Angeles (USA), and Rome (Italy).

Ma Yansong, Yosuke Hayano and Qun Dand.

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Published on: December 19, 2020
Cite: "‘Yabuli Entrepreneurs' Congress Center’ by MAD nears opening" METALOCUS. Accessed
<http://www.metalocus.es/en/news/yabuli-entrepreneurs-congress-center-mad-nears-opening> ISSN 1139-6415
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