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Architects: Society of Architecture
- Area: 996 m²
- Year: 2020
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Photographs:Kyungsub Shin
An Atrium for the White Pine - The white pine tree site, located west of 35-17 Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, was where a magnificent pine tree used to stand. Once known as the biggest of its kind in Korea, the tree had been designated as a natural monument until it died in 1991. What’s left of the past are its stump and a few more lacebark trees that were planted afterward. Three stumps of two-year-old lacebark pine trees stand next to the old stump to bring a serendipitous pleasure for those who walk along the narrow alleys, maximizing the walking experience unique to the Seochon district.
Brickwell stretches over the site of 35-17, Tongui-dong, and wholly embraces the old resting area which has witnessed the history of the city’s construction for nearly 200 years. Attached to the tree site, a garden was created to naturally connect the alleys, and the garden joins a courtyard layered over a pond in the center of the rounded building.
Rising Garden - The garden adjacent to the tree site, created by floating the first floor with piloti, expands as a garden united with the white pine stump and at the same time, rises to the upper atrium of the building. The garden also creates a deep sense of forest under the piloti by its continuity from the alley on the east side. The 10.5-meter diameter atrium both faces the interior space and outer terrace in half within the second, third, and fourth floors. Along the path of the atrium, a different sense of garden is created.
Landscape Framed by Flat Ceilings and Floors - The space of each floor is defined by concrete ceilings and floors exposed by a flat slab structure. In order to keep the ceiling without any pipings passing by, a separate space for air-conditioning facilities is provided and the form of a flat slab structure is exposed as it is without any beam. Through these, the courtyard can be faced anywhere in the 75py square plane. The horizontal opening within the slab frames the landscape outside the building, and especially on the third floor, the scenery of Inwangsan Mountain passes through the courtyard and enters the interior space.
The Possibility within Bricks - The materials used in the projects are mostly three types of structural materials; exposed concrete, yellow granite, and brick. Bricks define the internal and external communication methods through variations of construction methods including traditional brick masonry, pressing as tiles, and cladding.
