SmithGroup shared their winning master plan proposal for a new Marine Sciences campus for the Pohang Institute of Science and Technology (POSTECH), in Uljin, South Korea.  With the driving concept of a “wave” – a form common to both land and sea – the new design takes full advantage of the site’s natural beauty, weaving students throughout the campus and tying the man-made with the undulating topography.

More about the winning proposal after the break.
The new Marine Science campus, which will include space for ad­ministration, classrooms and research buildings, and residences for students and faculty,  is located 50 miles from the main campus in a secluded and hilly site on the east coast of Korea overlooking the East Sea.  Academic building are tucked into the natural topography of the south facing mountains, with residences further up the mountains connected via a winding road.  By running the buildings up the mountains’ sides, the valley floor is preserved as an ecological park.  Plus, the buildings benefit from the thermal mass of the mountain.

The formerly agricultural valley floor of the site will be reclaimed and revived to become an eco-park with water features, paths and walkways, and areas for passive recreation.  At the west end of the site, the agricultural reservoir will be transformed into a larger pond which will collect water from the hills, together with runoff from campus and residential development.   The water will gradually meander and flow along the natural slope of the valley floor, pooling naturally according to the topography toward the sea, and becoming filtered by the vegetation as it makes its way to the east, eventually emptying out into the sea.



Project Information:

Architect: SmithGroup/JJR
Associate Architect: POSAC
Design Team Members: Michael Kang, FAIA, LEED AP; Sven Shockey, AIA, LEED AP; Merrill St Leger Demian, AICP, LEED AP; Dayton Schroeter, AIA; Seong Koo Lee; Yuran Shen

Project Name/Address:  Postech Marine Sciences Campus Master Plan, Uljin, South Korea
Owner:   Pohang Institute of Science and Technology (Postech)
Completion Date: TBD
Total Project Area: 82 acres
620,000 gsf construction

Florian Beigel + ARU London, Choi JongHoon + NIA Seoul



A City Cluster of Publishing Houses in Paju Book City, Korea


Paju has a unique sense of civility which can be experienced in a special public realm comprising the wetland canal unifying the entire estate, a number of cultural building clusters, the city views of the Han River landscape and the Simhak Mountain and the street spaces running north south parallel to the river. Some publishing houses on the main streets make gifts to the city with little public squares and public courtyards extending the space off the street.

ARU has completed three publishing houses at Paju Book City, two for Youl Hwa Dang Publishing House and one for Positive Thinking People Publishing House. These buildings sit along side each other on Bookmaker’s Street, forming a city cluster in Paju with a generosity of spirit and sense of civility.

Similar to the language of Positive Thinking People Building and in a more archaic way, similar to the black Youl Hwa Dang building next to it, the façade of the Book Hall Building facing the Art Yard speaks a friendly classical language of vertical differentiation. It is composed of closely packed buildings next to each other or on top of each other with different characters and architectural proportions. They are all simple wall and window buildings. A closer look at the façade reveals 3 or 4 different architectural characters in the Art Yard façade. The different characters to some extent reflect the essential spatial differentiation behind the facades: Book Hall, Mezzanine Lounge, Reading Room, and Book Café, with double storey Apartments stacked on top.

Design study sketch of the architectural composition of the public façade facing the Art Yard and the city. Drawing: Florian Beigel, May 2007.

Architecture Research Unit, London

The Nine Bridges Country Club-Clubhouse is a 16,000-squaremeter facility that serves a golf course. It has an underground level and three floors above grade. There is a main building, VIP lobby building, and a structure with private suites.



The atrium and the upper portion of the main building include timber columns and a glass curtain wall, while the base is made of stone (random rubble masonry typical of Korea). The timber area includes the reception zone, a member’s lounge, and a party room. The stone podium houses locker rooms, bathrooms, and service areas. The roof over the main building measures 36 x 72 meters.




The unusual tree-like timber columns in the atrium reach to a height of three stories. The partial-timber structure was used to conform to Korean regulations that do not allow timber buildings to exceed 6 000 square meters in size. The first floor of the atrium has 4.5-meter-wide glass shutters that open fully.

The Haesley Nine Bridges Golf Club House on Jeju Island, South Korea is an example of the stunning design possibilities of engineered glulam timbers.

The building’s wooden hexagon grid shell, an ecological and naturally ventilated concept of a hexagon pattern, is based an a Korean traditional summertime pillow (called” bamboo wife”). The most innovative feature is the hexagon grid shell roof. The fire-resistant roof and columns are exposed in the interior spaces.

Using advanced computer and cutting machine technology, the designers, Shigeru Ban Architects, were able to find the most efficient structural form and minimize the assembly process and quantity of timber used.



Haesley nine bridges golf clubhouse  Yeoju, South Korea
Architects: KyeongSik Yoon (KACI International) and Shigeru Ban Architects
Client: Haesley Nine Bridges
Contractor: C.J. Engineering & Construction
Photographers: JongOh Kim

Site Area: 1,132,871.00m2
Bldg. Area: 5,420.21m2
Gross Floor Area: 22,463.189m2
Bldg Scale: 1 story below ground, 3 stories above ground
Structure: Timber Structure, S.R.C.
Exterior Finishing: Stone, Glass Shutter, T24 Pair Glass
Interior Finishing: Timber, Travertine, Papertube, Stone