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We here at PopSci enjoy our green dreams for future buildings as much as any other geek. So imagine the excitement when Beijing-based MAD Ltd. unveiled its solar eco-skin design for the Taichung Convention Center in Taiwan.

The landmark building design aims to meld future tech with natural shapes that evoke mountains dotted with crater-like openings. We can only hope that a recovering post-apocalyptic landscape would look so pleasing.

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The Beijing-based architects of MAD Ltd. recently unveiled their design for the Taichung Convention Center in Taiwan, complete with a pleated solar skin design.

Nightscape

The Beijing-based architects of MAD Ltd. recently unveiled their design for the Taichung Convention Center in Taiwan, complete with a pleated solar skin design.
The surface of the 'mountains' consists of a high-tech, eco-friendly pleated skin system. That wraps around the building like a smock to utilize solar energy -- one side of the pleats lets in sunlight through a transparent skin, while the other side is solid.

MAD Mountains

The surface of the ‘mountains’ consists of a high-tech, eco-friendly pleated skin system. That wraps around the building like a smock to utilize solar energy — one side of the pleats lets in sunlight through a transparent skin, while the other side is solid.
A top-down view intends to evoke a naturalistic landscape filled with mountains and craters. The contours of the building also represent a nod to the preexisting lay of the land.

Holy Cratered Convention Center

A top-down view intends to evoke a naturalistic landscape filled with mountains and craters. The contours of the building also represent a nod to the preexisting lay of the land.
The building area sprawls across 216,000 square meters, or more than 2.3 million square feet. An interconnected interior houses entertainment centers, retail, convention space, offices and parking space, all lit by natural light.

Sky High Ceilings

The building area sprawls across 216,000 square meters, or more than 2.3 million square feet. An interconnected interior houses entertainment centers, retail, convention space, offices and parking space, all lit by natural light.
A single tree, a patch of bamboo, or a pond may form the central figures in the interior spaces -- a balance between the technological exterior and the aesthetics of sustainable development.

Inner Harmony

A single tree, a patch of bamboo, or a pond may form the central figures in the interior spaces — a balance between the technological exterior and the aesthetics of sustainable development.
Open courtyards connect the individual 'mountains' of the building, and form a sequence of outdoor spaces.

Cutaway

Open courtyards connect the individual ‘mountains’ of the building, and form a sequence of outdoor spaces.