studio_GAON: house of january, house on the demarcation

‘house of january, house on the demarcation’ by studio_GAON, jeonju, koreaimage © youngchae parkall images courtesy of studio_GAON

the ‘house of january, house on the demarcation’ by korean practice studio_GAON, sits in a village called banwall on the outskirts of jeonju, one of the most calm and beautiful city of korea. with a pine forest on north and an orchard to south, the most peculiar aspect of the site is the graveyard to the west, which also defines the outermost boundary of the village. the home is erected on several overlapping of demarcation; between the dead and living; between various levels of ground; between the client’s old job and new beginning. in this position, the home is like a gate that transcends the physical and spiritual boundaries, embracing a peaceful and unrestricted life like a character in a forgotten story book.

walk throughvideo © minjung choi

comprised of two structures, the brick-clad construct contains the recreational and leisure activities, and faces slightly east towards the ‘moak mountain.’ the other edifice, a wrapped in vertical wood planks, defines the domestic functions of life and faces due south. the independent structures create a madang, or empty space, in between them, and has no definite shape of its own. it works both as a buffer and also as an active division simultaneously, it is a feature that has meaning only because it is not filled. the ‘maru’ (korean terrace) that faces this madang is a distinctive spatial element that is neither inside nor outside, a demarcation between interior and exterior. the name therefore derives from this distinction of borders, as the month of january is the threshold between one chapter in time and the next. a korean poet once cried, ‘on each and every boundary, the flowers abound generously.’

east elevationimage © youngchae park

image © youngchae park

south elevation and entry roadimage © youngchae park

west elevation and madangimage © youngchae park

surrounded by fields on each sideimage © youngchae park

image © youngchae park

exterior deck connects both structuresimage © youngchae park

entry stairsimage © youngchae park

image © youngchae park

living roomimage © youngchae park

stairsimage © youngchae park

bedroom

bridge and upper space of living room

living room (view from the bridge)

site plan

floor plan / level 0

floor plan / level 1

section

elevation

watercolor

project info:

architect: hyoungnam lim, eunjoo roh in studio_gaonproject team: sangwoo yi, minjung choi, sungpil lee, seongwon son, miso kim, haelee jungphotographs: youngchae parklocation: banwall-dong, deokjin-gu, jeonju-si, jeonbuk, koreause: housesite area: 747㎡building area: 126.26㎡gross floor area: 194.59㎡building scope: 2fbuilding-to-land ratio: 16.9%floor area ratio: 26.05%structure: lightweight wood-frame constructionfinish: red pine, red brickroof: zincsupervision: studio_gaondesign period: 2011.08 – 2012.04construction period: 2012.05 – 2012.09

studio_GAON (22)