SPACE April 2026 (No. 701)
Kim Jinhyu, delivering a lecture ©Kim Hyerin
On Feb. 26, the completion ceremony for the 20th student reporters and the orientation for the 21st cohort were held at EAGON HAUS, the showroom of the EAGON head office. Since 2001, SPACE has run this programme to offer students experiences beyond the design studio. This initiative can be understood as the vision of Kim Swoo Geun, who established SPACE in 1966, emphasising engagement with diverse cultural and artistic communities through the magazine and the advancement of architectural discourse. Kim Jeoungeun, Editor-in-Chief of SPACE, opened the event by recalling her own experience as a student reporter. More specifically, she reflected, ‘My journey in architectural media began as a student reporter, and it continues to this day with SPACE’. She then introduced the current editorial team who have dedicated themselves to the magazine’s evolution and presented certificates of completion to the 20th student reporters. The 20th cohort followed with a reflection on their year-long collective experience examining how architecture is recorded and disseminated across diverse media from both traditional publishing and digital media, such as YouTube platforms.
As the main event, Kim Jinhyu (Co-Principal, KimNam Architects), the featured architect of the Mar. issue, delivered his lecture titled ‘The Understory’. In this lecture, rather than introducing KimNam Architects (hereinafter KimNam)’s architectural language, he focused on how the office reads site-specific conditions and shapes their findings into architecture form and details by referring to a few selected projects. Reflecting on his early professional experience in Switzerland after his studies in the U.S., he noted that the material sensibility and fabrication knowledge he acquired during that period continue to influence his work today. In particular, he emphasised the notion of the ‘well-made’, a sensibility cultivated during his time at Herzog & de Meuron. For him, ‘well-made’ is an attitude grounded in the belief that every element operates in precise and appropriate relation to one another.
The first project of their practice was the revitalisation of an old cabin in the Swiss Alps. During the site observation, he discovered an interesting interior materiality which contrasted sharply with the weathered exterior. His close attention to small details such as a grain of aged timber, its contraction, gaps, and the light and air that permeate through them, reveals how KimNam devotes to the materiality and their systems of assembly.
Another work, Incheon International Airport Cargo Lounge (2025; coverd in SPACE No. 700) translates this sensibility into an entirely different context. Though the airport site, constructed on reclaimed land, does not have any historical context, he identified its distinct scale and architectural order. As a result, the design turned into a simple, box-like interior volume with a lightweight steel canopy.
A House by a Lake (2023; coverd in SPACE No. 678) is a residence situated on a sloped site overlooking Cheongpungho Lake in Jecheon. The design is driven by the careful analysis of living patterns and climate conditions. Dominant usage of Lexan canopies in the surrounding village inspired the development of aMeanwhile, the Hyundai Department Store Valet Lounge (2025; coverd in SPACE No. 700) and Hoam Cafe (2025; coverd in SPACE No. 700) address the question of how best to respond to existing conditions and establish a new internal order. In valet lounge, rather than mimicking or confronting the aura of the existing department store’s European-classicism, their practice proposed a ‘quiet and impassive’ canopy as a neutral gesture. In café project, within the context of the existing garden and retaining walls, a new volume has been inserted into the ground with 13m column-free roof. The recycled stone cladding as well as the modular logic of the concrete casting reveal KimNam Architects’ philosophy.
The 21st student reporter will continue its activities through Feb. of next year. This year, new student reporter group will be divided into Planning and Media teams, supported by SAMPYO GROUP.
