Respectful to the Changes of the Strange Buildings

This project is located on a narrow site next to Jeamin Stream, which is elongated like a spine penetrating the old and the new towns that comprise the historical city Gongju. Jeamin stream has been rather abandoned for a long time, along with the old villages, historic sites, and shops nearby. It was just recently transformed into a walkway favoured by local residents, through the Ecological River Development project. 

The client, who runs an engineering firm, requested programmes such as a personal workspace, a gallery for social exchange, and a café that sells tea to river strollers. Facing the unswerving street of the long and narrow Jeamin Stream – which is almost 2km long without a kink, and bordered by the continuing, enclosed walls of the houses built in the 1960-1970s – the goal was to create a small but very compelling corner of open public space that is respectful to the changes of the strange buildings that continue to be built around it.

Open-nest-like hemisphere walls facing the river cover the upper part of the building. The grounds are free for anyone to use, with the walls functioning as the main structure that also arranges the functions of the building in the upper level. The second level is a gallery, in which the inside is clearly visible from the outside through a window. The workspace on the third level, which requires privacy, features louvres that help to adjust the depth of light coming through. 

Project Information

Project Name: Riverside Apse

Architect: Jo Jinman,Republic of Korea 

Location: Gongju, Republic of Korea