On August 25, MAD held a press conference at the Italian Embassy in advance of it's upcoming exhibition "MAD in China." The exhibition will be held at the DIOCESI Museum in Venice from September 8-30.

Reflecting both the theme of Venice Biennial and MAD's interest in history and what is yet to come, a set of imaginary projects on the city of Beijing address the future. It explores MAD's fantasies and ideology concerning the future of life and the city. The exhibition will also display the fruits of MAD's practice in the past two years with 12 projects. MAD intends to provide insights into social, cultural and urban issues in modern China through MAD's practice.

Floating island over the Central Business District in Beijing was built according to the western vision of modernization created in the last century, which is regarded as an expression of wealth and status. However, unlike Western countries, Beijing's CBD isn't characterized by Western countries' ambition to push the limits of technology and the present, nor does it attempt to set future new standards for itself. What will the densely populated future city in China look like? We think we need a literal connection rather than segregation or simply chasing the building height. Digital studios, multi-media business centers, theaters, restaurants, libraries, sightseeing, exhibitions, gyms, and even a manmade lake are elevated above the CBD, and connect with each other horizontally. This proposal and the new city organization principle articulate our queries of "machine aesthetics" and "vertical city", characterized by modernism.

For more project information see MAD works: Beijing 2050