KOSMOS: A Vessel Encompassing the Energy of a Site
Ironically, the first time I set eyes on this site, located at the end of a cliff next to Mt. Songgot, I was faced with the idea that perhaps it would be better to construct something other than a building here. Not only had I judged that no such artificial act by man could surpass the dignity and force of the nature present, and that all attempts would only be crude, I also felt that there would be no means appropriate to accommodate the magnificence of the landscape. The only act possible seemed to be to carefully transport the tranquil yet dynamic layers instilled on the site’s surroundings, established over tens of thousands of years, with Mt. Songgot at its centre, into the site. Over a long period of time, the land evidently accumulated countless myths and secrets from the daily and unfailing interaction of the sun and the moon, rising and setting over eternity, the continuous rolling of the waves, and the floating clouds pursuing the changing temperaments of the atmosphere. This is what we commonly call ‘chi’ (energy) or the natural course of nature, and the most important point of departure for this project would be to allow the project and its occupants to exist within this natural rhythm.
I hoped that the project could be more of a vessel that could embrace this energy than a building, and that the project would become a sort of celestial instrument that would allow us to meditate and sense the natural phenomena of the universe and the earth. The title KOSMOS, (derived from the ancient Greek word cosmos) also originates from this context. Ultimately, from the early stages of design and the help of an space observatory computer, we were able to read the tranquil and mysterious trajectory of the sun and the moon to create a basic form of the KOSMOS originating from the helix curve, and the six whirlpool-form branches, created to meet with the natural phenomena that surrounds the site. We hoped that this could connect nature and man who resides within it, each in their own way, in line with this coursing energy.
Overall form_ The six vault structures that unravel and curve out from the centre of the project are the most important element of the project, and simultaneously pose great difficulties in their material fabrication. Each of the vaults were uniquely established to correspond with their unique views, as if responding to their surroundings in terms of the finishing materials, the furniture, and even the appliances within. The vaults, which each follow their own independent curves upon entering, first temporarily shield out the outdoor views from the inside, and then gradually introduce these views in as one ventures further inside. As mentioned before, it was hoped that the facilities would come to be recognised as more of a thing or object rather than a building, and hence, the general exposure of the mechanical infrastructure that serves to complete the function of the construction was restrained where possible. Functional elements such as lighting, humidity control systems, HVAC and diffusers were transplanted into the inner skin of the project like a skin organism. The internal skin is composed so that the metallic surface of the porous body will gradually and intricately open out towards the pitch of the vault. This porous skin will take on the role of individually regulating the external environment according to the tendencies of the visitors, by regulating the degree of light, temperature and humidity.
A new aesthetic of a new concrete_ Ultra High Performance Concrete (UHPC) was selected as a material for two main reasons. First, due to its high level of sodium. As the project was built by the seaside, the high sodium content became an important determining factor in terms of durability and maintenance. Second, its ‘ultra high strength’ qualities permitted fabrication without iron cores, allowing the structure to be built as thinly as possible. I felt that a structure should be as light and cheerful as possible. KOSMOS is a resort that is composed of six curved vaults (at a maximum thickness of 12cm) and five linear tube structures. The visual clarity that this thin-width structure presents is in fact quite distant from what one might assume from an ‘ultra high strength structure’. Due to a similar thickness between the structure and the external frames of the internal windows, the material offers an emotively different sensation from the sturdy and bulky structural system that concrete commonly evokes. If tectonics denote a legitimacy between the use of materials and their formal properties, perhaps the tectonics of concrete must now also face fundamental change. If previous experiments at PLACE 1 furthered the optimised and verified the methodology of UHPC’s assets of modularisation and factory production, the KOSMOS project is significant as it ran the risk of, and successfully overcame the quite substantial feat of, producing the first ever building to be entirely cast in place with UHPC.
It is hoped that KOSMOS, born from the meeting of design and technology by using innovative materials, will respond to the archaic scenery of Ulleungdo Island and the island’s mysterious energy, fusing with nature for the many years yet to come.
Architect
THE_SYSTEM LAB (Kim Chanjoong)
Design team
Lee Choonglyeol, Kim Jongkil, Kim Younghwan, Lee H
Kim Chanjoong graduated from Korea University with a bachelor’s degree and received his master’s degree at the Harvard University. Also he studied at Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH). After working as the senior architect at the Hanwool Architecture Company, Chan Krieger Associates and KSWA, he is currently working as a visiting professor at the Architecture Department of Kyung Hee University while serving as the principal in charge of THE_SYSTEM LAB in seoul. In 2006, he was invited to the Venice Biennale as the representative architecture of South Korea. In the same year, he was chosen as one of the six young Asian architects at the Beijing International Architecture Biennale. Some of his major projects have been Gangnam Commercial Building, Yeonhui-dong Gallery, Raemian Gallery, Han-river Pedestrian Tunnel Project, Ssangyong Pinetree, SK The Happiness Foundation Building, Hana Bank PLACE 1 in South Korea.
