Architect: Kim Dong-jin (Hongik University), L’EAU DESIGN
Location: 286-19 Haengdang-dong, Seongdong-gu, Seoul
Program: Commercial Facilities
Site area: 202.00㎡
Building area: 106.81㎡
Gross floor area: 918.48㎡
Building scope: 10F, B2
Structure: RC
Construction: Co-Workers
Completion: 2020
Photo: Kim Jae Yoon

About Kim Dong Jin

Architect D.P.L.G.
President of L’EAU DESIGN Co., Ltd. Laboratory of Environment Architecture Urbanism
Professor of the Graduate School of Architectural engineering Hong-ik University
www.leau.co.kr
leau@lycos.co.kr

Kim dong-jin studies architecture in Hongik, Seoul, and in Ecole d’Architecture de Paris-Belleville, becoming an Architect DPLG. He has worked at SAC (Seoul Architects Consultants) INTERNATIONAL, LTD. in Seoul. He is the President of L’EAU DESIGN Co., Ltd. Laboratory of Environment Architecture Urbanism, and is a professor of Hongik University.

His major works include “Bati-ㄹ“, ”Scarlet Terre house”, “Ohryu High School Renovation”, “Iridescent cloud”, “RSM Design Studio-Official Space”, “Newyork Gana Gallery” and etc. He has received Seoul Metropolitan Government Architecture Awards in 2007, Korea, Awards of the Korean Institute of Architects in 2008, 1st Young Architect Awards in 2008.

This is an aerial view of the house showcasing how it stands out against the surrounding buildings.

This is a side view of the building showcasing the multiple levels with various panels and glass walls.

This is a close look at the upper levels of the building showcasing the glass walls and gray panels of the exterior.

This view of the building showcases its unique design with glass walls on strategic places.

This is a side of the building showcasing the upper levels that have gray panels on its exterior walls contrasted by the glass windows.

This is a closer looka t the side of the building that showcases more of its glass walls and windows with tint that gives it a reflective quality.

This is a side view of the building showcasing the different tones of the building's levels.

This is a side view of the building showcasing the gray tone of the upper panels and the light gray tone of the levels below.

This is a close look at the upper level windows with the two lower ones installed at an angle.

This is a nighttime view of the building showcasing the glass walls of the base levels that give glimpses of the bright interiors through the glass walls.

This is a close look at the ground level coffee shop of the building with glass walls on one side.

Across from the coffee shop counter are the sets of tables and chairs beside the staircase.

This is a close look at the second level landing with a concrete flooring to match the concrete ceiling with exposed vents and lighting.

This is a close look at one of the upper floor landings that has a large glass wall on the side that brings in natural lighting.

The building has corner with a tall concrete wall on the side of a tall glass wall beside the staircase.

This is a closer look at the staircase that has a concrete and modern design with white railings.

This is an upper floor with a darker tone to its concrete wall beside the large glass wall.

The building has white doors that stand out against the tall concrete walls.

These concrete walls have modern lighting from above that give the area a unique look.

This is a close look at one of the offices with concrete walls and a white desk on the far side by the window.

This is an illustration of the first level floor plan.

This is an illustration of the fsecond level floor plan.

This is an illustration of the third and fourth level floor plan.

This is an illustration of the fifth and sixth level floor plan.

This is an illustration of the seventh to ninth level floor plan.

This is an illustration of the eighth to ninth level floor plan.

This is an illustration of the various elevations of the building.

”Two worlds of different gravities under the same sky”

The movie <Patema Inverted> is set in a world where opposing gravities exist sharing one sky and is a story about recognizing disparities through each other and achieving harmony. The studio apartment ‘Patema Inverted’, located at the entrance of Haengdang market, talks about how conflicting things that seem rather heterogeneous for an efficient apartment to be built can coexist.

First, the disparate level difference between the three types of building groups that form the district raised an issue. There are countless one- or two-story stores that form the market. Behind them four- to five-story office buildings are sparsely located, and high-rise buildings are widely spread out. ‘Patema Inverted’ utilized red bricks and transparent glass as exterior materials of the first and second floors, and a cafe that is open towards the market intersection was placed.

The lower floors were made into white volumes of similar levels to the neighborhood living facility buildings nearby, and the residential area on top was finished with two tones of gray cement bricks. The volume of red bricks on the ground floors naturally blends in and dissolves with the complicated market buildings in the surrounding, the relatively bright-colored middle floors are emphasized, and as the two tones of gray seem to retreat upwards for the upper floors, the heterogeneity caused by the level difference in the region is diluted and embraced.

The problem that came afterward was the inherent heterogeneity of efficient apartments in terms of functions and life patterns. The boundary between the multiple people of the market and the residents of the efficiency apartment is broken and formed again in the wide-open cafe on the first and second floors.

The upper floors were planned as housings for one- to two-person households, which are mostly university students, graduates, and newlyweds, in an attempt to bring young generations into the stagnant market. The smaller the area is, the more things there are to carefully consider in the design process. The privacy issues have to be suitably mediated while solving the lighting problem, and studies on anthropometric measurements as well as new ideas for space utilization are also required in order to avoid any areas being wasted.

We used a method of securing personal areas while bringing sunlight into the interior as evenly as possible by placing uneven windows in the interior. We hope that the external situations in the city center are attracted into the internal architectural environment and that the internal programs are sometimes naturally projected and displayed to the exterior to appear as the building’s envelope, allowing the interior and exterior to flexibly react to each other so that it becomes an architectural form that grows and evolves by itself.