Daejeon, South Korea | Type: Competition | Size: 65,000 sf | Year: 2026
BE THE FOREST: Inspired by the surrounding forests of the Bomun Arboretum, our proposal abstracts the tree canopy into a living architecture, where both architecture and nature merge together into a symbiotic eco-system. The heavy-timber roof (or canopy) informs the structural and tectonic language of the building, and filters natural light down into the gardens below, while also framing views out to the landscape at key points within the building.
WITH THE FOREST: The porous quality of the canopy quite literally breathes with nature, following its rhythmic daily and seasonal changes, allowing for both ventilation and humidity control which are critical to the success of the conservatory. This idea of porosity goes beyond the roof/canopy, ex-tending to the entire building such that there are multiple instances where the division between interior and exterior is intentionally blurred, creating spectacle in areas such as the roof-terraces, the entrance arcade and the Bomun Falls east entry into the building. This porosity in both plan and section creates a rich tapestry of spaces, that enrich the experience of the public, enticing them to come back.
GROWING THE FOREST: The sloping nature of the massing not only visually ‘completes’ the mountain slope on which the building is sited, but also corresponds - in section - to the varied planting heights in relation to the three specified climatic zones (Sub-Tropical, Temperate and Special). This terraced approach to design minimizes the need for extensive cut and fill to the existing site, while also ensuring that the interiors naturally blur into one another, which significantly contributes towards way-finding and a choreographed sequence to moving through the building.