Dulnyouk Publishers, Paju, Korea

This project provides Dulnyouk Publishers with a new facility which consolidates their directive, administrative and editorial facilities. It is located in Paju Book City, a strategically-designed satellite town of Seoul intended centralise the editorial business in the region. The site is a 2000m² lot on the western edge of a hill, towering over the valley where Paju Book City is located.

The regulation of the Paju Book City masterplan stipulates that buildings have an an east-west orientation, to avoid blocking the air flow between the hill and the riverside to the west of the site, and a height limitation of three stories. The programme of accommodation includes archive and storage space, workspace for the company’s various operations, event space and an apartment for guests: a total area of 1800m². The building is designed to maximise the potential of its suburban location in Paju Book City by turning the workspaces into a literal extension of the gardens surrounding the building.

Intensifying the qualities of the strong orientation in the masterplan, the building is designed as a folded screen between a south-facing green garden and a north-facing mineral garden which literally extend into the two faces of the screen, one clad in wood and the other in stone. The geometry of the folded screen which constitutes the structure of the building is arranged in such a way that every floor is alternatively oriented towards either of the two gardens, producing a constant alternation of landscapes and finishes as one moves across the section of the building.