Open Paradox, MANIFESTO and ILKUN‘s proposal for the IT Convergence Center for KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology), aims to provide a truly multi-disciplinary research and educational environment for the institute. Located on the sloped East Campus Plaza of KAIST, the building allows free-flowing interaction between students and faculty of multiple academic disciplines as well as with the remaining school population and the public, fostering an atmosphere of creativity and openness.
This proposal received 3rd Prize at the Design Competition and was the recipient of a 2010 AIA NY Design Award.
Architects: MANIFESTO Architecture P.C. (Design Architect) and ILKUN Architects & Engineers Ltd. (Local Architect) Location: Daejeon, Korea Consultants: Yoshinori Nito Engineering & Design P.C. Renderings: Courtesy of MANIFESTO. Design Team: Jeeyong An, Sang Hwa lee, Gi Young Park, JiYoon Oh, Sorae Yoo, Eunchung Na, Ulyong Moon, Sieun Lee (Manifesto) Ilin Hwang, Sung Jung Chough, Hyejin Choi, Hyunhee An, Byunghoon Kim, Yongik Won (Ilkun).
The placement of the building takes into consideration its relationship with the campus as a whole, allowing people to approach easily from all neighboring areas of the campus, thus providing the previously neglected north east corner of the campus with a new lively presence. The open plaza features colorful landscape with various embedded programs such as the convergence plaza and an amphitheater which sit on the sloped site.
The building itself is largely divided into three zones, the educational zone located at the top, the research zone occupying the center, and the public zone on the ground level. Within the research zone students labs located on the north wing are separated by a bridged atrium space with the faculty offices of the south wing. The bridged atrium allows for less emphasis on the direct, sometimes even restrictive, affiliation between student and professor and encourages across-fertilization between different disciplines and research teams. The atrium also allows for the research activities taking place within the zone to be visible by the public visiting the building on the ground level, resulting in a dynamic and mutually beneficial, educational relationships between all three types of occupants (faculty, students and visiting public) within the building.
Project Profile: -Project: KAIST IT Convergence Center -Location: Daejeon, Korea -Typology: Education and Research -Site Area: 25,000 m2 -Footprint: 3,067 m2 -Total Floor Area: 21,535 m2 -Land-Building Ratio: 12.27% -FAR: 83.12% -Structure: Reinforced Concrete, Steel Frame -Floors: 8F, B1 -Height: 42 m -Exterior Finish: Curtain Wall, Aluminum Panel, Glass -Mechanical System: CAV + FCU -Parking: 16 above ground, 170 below ground (including 12 ADA)
