SPACE August 2026 (No. 705)
Interview Hyunjoon Yoo Professor, Hongik University x Bang Yukyung Editor, SPACE
Publicness and Public Architecture
Bang Yukyung (Bang): It’s already our magazine’s third FRAME following the ones we published in 2020 and 2024. Among your recent works included in this issue, two of them are public architecture projects while the others highlighted publicness as a common theme. Also, having survived the pandemic, the realm of social experience has now switched back from ‘non-contact’ to ‘contact’. From these contexts, I wonder what your recent views are on publicness and the role of public architecture.
Hyunjoon Yoo (Yoo): Today, most aspects of modern life – from work to leisure – take place in the online world. As people watch YouTube or OTT services in their private rooms, people are starting to have fewer interactions with one another. Consequently, people are starting to more deeply appreciate physical interactions and shared experiences in physical ‘offline’ spaces. Amid these changes, local governments are recognising that public architecture must address the critical question: how do we build systems that prevent social division and ensure community sustainability? I believe that a successful society must spontaneously generate new programmes for public architecture—just as how the ancient Greek amphitheatre, a new spatial form that had never existed before, fostered the community of Athens and the birth of democracy. Most of the public architecture we create today is based on typologies and programmes developed after the advent of modern society, and I feel there are clear limitations to this approach. New types of libraries, community centres, churches, and art museums must emerge.
Section diagram of OAR Contemporary Art Museum
Process diagram of OAR Contemporary Art Museum
Bang: Have there been any recent changes in your work process, attitude, or perspective?
Yoo: Not particularly. Our process involves defining a problem; once we solve it, the design is complete. But I guess what we define as problems can change considering how environments and conditions shift with the times. Regarding what I said earlier that programmes should evolve along with the changing society, the Gochang Hwang Yunseok Library (hereinafter Gochang Library) is a good example. While past libraries were solemn, quiet spaces centred on information and packed with books, we thought it more important to have modern libraries function as the ‘city’s living room’. In the past, libraries would have been designed to minimise sunlight and maximise storage capacity for the sake of book preservation and management. Instead, we adopted a new perspective: the entire façade is clad in glass to ensure unobstructed views, and the space functions as a large, open area that seamlessly connects the interior and exterior.
Bang: Looking at the photos, I doubted at first whether the space would work as intended, so I was surprised to see it completely filled with people. (laugh)
Yoo: Right from the start, we designed the Gochang Library to be an open, spacious environment, thinking that it will be visited by families from out of town. Toddlers read books with their parents in the toddler section toward the back of the first floor, while older children read comic books in the corner by the staircase leading to the second floor. While ensuring a visual connection, I also proposed a long, diagonal bookshelf-wall to separate the spaces. During the site visit, I noticed that many people were bringing laptops to study or work on the second floor, which we had originally planned as a youth reading area connected to the backyard. I think the relatively low ceiling height makes it easier to focus. It was really interesting as a designer to see how users naturally settled into their own spots, creating these unwritten boundaries.
Process diagram of Gochang Hwang Yunseok Library
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