Modernist Discipline: Choi Moongyu + Ga.A Architects

 

Simplicity is the most important theme in my architecture: simple architecture built upon clarity of thought. I begin with the idea of ‘questioning the familiarities of the world and proposing alternatives’, then refine and develop that idea so that it can be clearly understood. As I think more about how to communicate an idea rather than the form of a building, a design that was initially complex gradually becomes simpler, and my concern with the shape, size, or proportion of windows, for example, starts to fade. Rather than arbitrary proportions or forms, I focus on ‘communicating the idea’. If I use a cube, for example, I tend towards an exact cube, and the windows become square. In Ssamziegil (2004), I concentrated on creating a natural continuation from Insadong-gil into the building, using materials that do not call attention to themselves and concealing the details.

 

The project’s Korean name, ㅅㄱ, derives from Sukkoth, a place referenced in the Old Testament. Sukkoth was where the Israelites pitched their tents for the first time after leaving Egypt. A temporary place for those who had not yet arrived at the Promised Land, it offered them protection and a moment to prepare before they continued their journey. Located in the old town of Sungui-dong, Michuhol-gu, Incheon, the Sungui Church Cultural Space brings this ancient significance to the contemporary city.

 

Its neighbourhood is comprised of a mixture of residential buildings, food distribution shops, antique stores, and a small shopping area. Amid this landscape, where diverse urban contexts are contiguous, the building adopts a quiet but open attitude, refraining from overtly expressing itself. On the exterior, there are no crosses or other signs to indicate that it is a church. Only ‘ㅅㄱ’ is discreetly visible on the wooden wall at the front, as a subtle marker. Passers-by naturally assume the building’s usage from the occasional gatherings and worship services that take place inside.

Modernist Discipline: Choi Moongyu + Ga.A Architects

 

The Seoul National University Medical Library adjoins a landscaped area with a narrow sidewalk to the south and faces a broad open space – the Gyeongmogung Shrine Site – to the west. This dual condition explains why the library, while conceived as a single building, takes on two distinct faces in response to nature and history. Along the wooded side, the existing trees were preserved, while the library was set back as far as possible to widen the sidewalk and landscaped area for visitors approaching the hospital. Here, a glass volume and a brick volume have been positioned alongside the greenery. The column-free, transparent grand reading room opens to the woods in the south, signaling to pedestrians passing by at dawn and in the evening that medical research continues unabated. Facing the Gyeongmogung Shrine Site, a designated cultural heritage site, the space is kept broadly open, while achromatic granite and louvers are used on the façade so that the building serves as a restrained backdrop to its historic setting.

 

Next to an office building at the entrance to one of Insa-dong’s alleyways, a soft glow rising from below ground catches the eye. Looking down, an unexpected landscape appears amid the city: rows of cuboid stone blocks set on an uneven earthen floor. This is the Insa Historic Site Museum, which opened in July. Built directly on a buried cultural heritage site and now Korea’s largest urban archaeological site museum, it peels back the layers of time to reveal the sixteenth-century city once more.

Modernist Discipline: Choi Moongyu + Ga.A Architects

 

PARKSEOBO MUSEUM consists of six independent galleries designed to accommodate a variety of exhibitions, across two basement levels and three floors above ground. GIZI_Art Base (covered in SPACE No. 622), previously designed by BCHO Partners, was set back 4m from the road to create a small garden in front. The new PARKSEOBO MUSEUM was positioned with the same setback, transforming what had been a confined streetscape into a brighter and more open one. The corners of the building were opened to preserve daylight and views for the neighbouring houses on either side, while the first floor was designed to be transparent, allowing the exhibitions and activities within to be visible from outside.