SPACE July 2025 (No. 692)
Departing the Apartment
Just 100 days after giving birth to twin boys, the couple – who are also the homeowners – came to us with the hope of building a safe and laughter-filled house (笑滿齊, Somanjae) for their growing children. While apartment living offered convenience, it clearly poses limitations when raising children. In contrast, the possibilities and benefits of a detached house felt far more compelling. The couple acquired a residential lot in the nearby Wonju Enterprise City and began to plan their new home.
They requested a yard and a swimming pool where the children could run and play freely. They also wanted a house that could flexibly adapt to the changes in their family’s lifestyle as the children grew older and accommodate each occupant’s unique approach to living in the space. While honouring their wishes, we sought to gain a deeper understanding of the site and discover an architectural solution well-suited to its context.
An architect must search for answers in the land itself. The site we first encountered was a wide, empty expanse—no different, at first glance, from other plots within the planned development area. We looked for clues, conscious of the invisible conceptual lines that already ran through the land, and imagined the urban fabric that would take shape in the future. It was the gentle hill behind the site that quickly provided a strong sense of direction for the design. On this clean, rectangular plot, we envisioned a home that was not excessive, but firmly enclosed and imbued with a sense of safety, solid in form and quietly protective.
Process diagram
Designed for Usefulness by Reinterpreting Regulations
The district unit planning guidelines – originating in Pangyo and seemingly copy-pasted nationwide – can, when carefully analysed, be leveraged as a foundation upon which to produce desired outcomes. Within a site destined to be densely filled with buildings under s...
acdo architects (Kim Dohyung)
Seol Haein
Sinpyeong-ro, Jijeong-myeon, Wonju-si, Gangwon-do
single house
441.1m²
224.14m²
342.84m²
2F
2
8.61m
50.81%
66.57%
RC
white reclaimed brick, thermally modified ash
wooden floor, paint on gypsum board
SDM Structural Consulting Engineers
SUNGJI ENC.
IECO ENG.
Archione Construction
May – Nov. 2023
Dec. 2023 – Oct. 2024
Park Junhyun, Kim Hyein
BOTANICAL STUDIO. SAM (Kim Sukwon, Kang Taeho)