Location

Seoul, South Korea

Service

Architectural Design

Schedule

Completed, 2018

Project Area

316,825 SF/
29,434 sq m

We designed a boutique hotel celebrating the underground cultural scene of Hongdae, a vibrant and growing neighborhood in Seoul.

As a playground for diverse cultures and an abundance of capital, Hongdae is flourishing.

From a railway yard during Japanese occupation in the ‘30s to a traditional local market in the ‘70s, today’s Hongdae comes from a richly layered history.

​Responding to the site's two urban conditions, the hotel expresses two varying facades: one facing the lively and pedestrian Hongdae district and one facing Yanghwa Road, a thoroughfare bordered by commercial office buildings. A glass curtain wall reflects the surrounding environs while clever stonework creates an illusory pattern that — like a staircase drawn by Escher — oscillates between dimensions.

The building set-back requirement provided a public open space, naturally creating pathways between the two fronts and an enclosed, but transparent ground level that can engage with artistic pedestrian scene of Hongdae by hosting pop-up events and operate as a local gathering space.