My Vision on Jeju Architecture
North London Collegiate School Jeju (NLCS J)
Living, Breathing, and Learning in the Presence of Itami Jun: NLCS Jeju as a School of Architectural Thought
From the School of Architecture at the Royal Institute of Technology by Tham & Videgård Arkitek ter to the Yale Art and Architecture Building by Paul Rudolph, it is quite common to see renowned archi tects constructing cutting-edge university buildings. But we don’t often hear about a critically acclaimed architect designing a high school campus. Visiting the North London Collegiate School, Jeju (NLCS Jeju) in South Korea begs the question, “Why not?” Itami Jun’s NLCS Jeju, which was completed in 2010, is the
culmination of the architect’s 37-year-long career, and it still feels like a dream that I live in this architectur al marvel.
Itami’s designs such as the Podo Hotel and the PINX Museum in Jeju Island share a universal quality that is noticeable to anyone: the synthesis of nature and the raw quality of architectural material that has an anti-modern twist. So, what would a school built by an anti-modernist possibly look like? At first glance, NLCS Jeju is as Itami Jun as a school could be: the U-shaped main academic buildings embrace the conical trees aligning the walk towards the main gate, with walls made of dark oak wood juxtaposed against
the greenery. The two built-in ponds accentuate the windy nature of Jeju Island as the water ripples gently to the breeze of Jeju. And there are components of the buildings that establish a sense of discipline; perhaps, he wanted the gray concrete walls to remind us that we are still in an institution of earnest education.
NLCS Jeju exemplifies Itami’s desire to design a building that is home to students who aspire to learn, socialize, and evolve. I’d like to think that Itami’s decision to situate the lawn specifically between the two main faculty buildings is to allow the students to enjoy a quick rest on the grass in between classes. Just like the way Itami found inspiration from nature, maybe he wanted the students to ruminate on their academic and artistic pursuits while looking at the ponds floored with Jeju basalts and the conical trees that sway rhythmically to the wind. The unusually high ceilings of the classrooms and libraries as well as
the countless number of windows feel like Itami’s way of maximizing the airiness of what could have been stuffy spaces.
With all such architectural details combined, it seems that Itami Jun wanted to create a space in which the pressure of laborious work and the relax ation that nature provides are not discordant, but rather complementary. I invite you to take a tour of his constructions around the island and finish your journey here. NLCS Jeju is not just an educational institution, but also an architectural masterpiece that everyone should experience.
Gapado Project
Gapado is an island near Jeju, well known for being a tourist destination. However, before it was a tourist destination, it was a place of residence. The younger generations in Gapado sought jobs in the mainland, leaving their homes. Displacement of young people led to a severe aging population in Gapado. To resolve such problems, Hyundai Card led a project to revitalise Gapado so that the younger generation can return and lead the future of the island.
Gapado is a flat and low island. Therefore, if a construction is too high it would be out of place. Thus, all buildings were designed as low-rise buildings. Also in order to preserve the nature of Gapado, the project focused on finding old buildings and reconstructing them rather than finding new sites. In 2018, after six year, Hyundai Card finalised a project that vitalises the nature, culture and economy of Gapado.
One part of Gapado project aimed to bring in young artists: Artist in Residence (AiR). AiR offers a studio and accommodation for young artists. By bringing in young artists and talented individuals, the project aimed to form a sustainable future for Gapado. AiR is the largest scale project within Gapado Project. Hyundai sought to find such a large space without harming the nature and view of Gapado. It found an underground space that was inundated and left uninhabited for 25 years and constructed a space for young artists. Despite the concern that underground structure may be cramped, opening up the ceiling and using fewer walls made the overall space to be less claustrophobic.
Gapado project also involved building leisure facilities like coffee shops, residences and community spaces. Although such infrastructures were newly built, by using colours and shapes that do not stand out, they seem to have always been a part of the island. The proj ect conveys how Hyundai Card sought architecture for people and island, not only for aesthetic beauty.
The project successfully preserves the mood of the island. Although there is a modern archi tecture mixed with old traditional Jeju architecture, because the mod ern architecture is neither tall nor distinguished, it does not harm the unique mood of the island.
However the big discomfort as a tourist visiting the project was that it is hard to access. The project is established in Gapado, which needs to be accessed through a tourist ship. Also, the main transportation within the island is by bicycle, which makes it hard for visitors who are not able to ride one hard to access. Therefore, when I visited with my family, it was hard for my brother to get to the project site. Although it is hard to introduce another project, I thought that it would be better if there were benches along the coast line.
Thus, I drew a design of a bench that can be laid out around the island. The design resembles the stylistic features of other projects: modern, low and grey.
Bangju Church
If I could select a single architecture to live in Jeju, it would be the Bangju Church, an archi tecture with perfect use of water, wood, and glass. Bangju Church is one of the renowned buildings designed by Itami Jun who is known for his capa bility to mingle nature with artificial structures. It is well known that Itami Jun has implement ed a unique feature that distinguishes Bangju Church from other types of his architecture.
Itami Jun was inspired by Noah’s Ark in de signing Bangju Church. Coincidentally, the Ark translated in korean is Bangju. The outer surface and its shape represent Noah’s Ark. Moreover, as the church is above a shallow layer of water, it vividly gives images an ark floating on water. Although the outer surface is mostly wood, it still consists of part in which there is glass. In addition to giving a great image of Noah’s Ark, the wooden exterior walls and glass reflecting all the surrounding scenery show subtlety between change and stability, leaving no room for bore dom. The conformity of the natural and artificial materials shows a subtle harmony to the build ing while giving visual comfort as well.
As primarily mentioned, Itami Jun has im plemented a unique feature to Bangju Church. Bangju Church has a layer of glisters at the roof as well as a shallow layer of water, accentuating the reflection of light. Therefore, when the outer surrounding changes, the outlook of the build ing itself changes as well. One major change that occurs is during the day. At 12:00 when the sun is over the head, the roof directly reflects the light at an angle, as if it is glowing from its roof. During sunset and sunrise, the surrounding scenery becomes much more orange and yellow due to the typical colour of sunset.
Although it gives an astonishing impression to the visitors, all visitors must bear in mind that it is still a church, a religiou place for worship and not a tourist site. Therefore, all visitors must keep silent in an endeavor to conserve the nature of the site.
What I liked about Bangju Church is that during the sunset and sunrise, it seems that the roof, wall and the sky merge together. One thing I would like to im prove if I were to be the architect is making the walls on both sides transpar ent. At the moment the side view is only transparent at the bottom of the building. Making the building wall in transparent glass will give a stronger sense that the building merging into the sky during sun sets.
Bonte Museum
he Bonte Museum is built using an ideology of traditions and modernity that conform to the land of Jeju Island. Bonte Museum is divided into 5 sections with each different theme and exhibition. Each section has its uniqueness giving the audience refresh ment after each exhibition.
Bonte Museum is also known for its quality of contemporary art as well as the exhibition of cultural heritage. Kusama Yayoi, a globally known artist for dotted pumpkin, has displayed her 3-dimensional pumpkin as well as her mirror room with variously coloured small decorative lightings. This made Bonte Museum a hotspot for photos for young teenagers.
A museum is a building constructed for the purpose of exhibition and display, meaning that the artistic pieces displayed are the protagonist of the Museum. How ever in the case of the Bonte Museum, it seems like the aesthetics of architecture is as much the main feature as are the artworks. The Bonte Museum is designed by a globally known Architect Ando Tad ao. In Bonte, we can identify Ando’s typ ical feature he uses in his other architec tural designs. The feature that stands out in Bonte Museum is his contemplation to make the museum be complementary to Jeju Island.
Ando heavily values the usage of nature and exposed concrete. Observed from a bird’s eye view, Bonte Museum lies in front of an extended shallow layer of water. With only artificial materials, the overall architecture would have seemed monotonous and dull. However, with the use of extended water, it gives the visitor a more comforting view. The
feature of water is what we can easily find in Ando’s other works such as the Water Temple and the Museum San.
The main material that catches visi tor’s eyes is the exposed concrete. To some extent, it is not surprising that Ando has used exposed concrete, due to his continu al use of it in his other works. However, he uses it differently from other architectural works. In the Bonte Museum, the exposed concrete walls positioned alongside the wall of a traditional Korean house, Hanok, is one of many arresting features. The pathways leading to exhibition halls and cafe is layed out with 90 degree angular paths. The path in some areas perpen dicularly intersect, forming somewhat complex paths. Again, this resembles the typical feature of Hanok. Hanok is built with straight and perpendicular corridors to allow wind to pass easily through Ha nok, keeping the house cool even without modern air conditioners and fans. The visitors can feel the contemplation Ando has put into designing a complementary piece for Korean audiences.
The Bonte Museum is known for its fusion of modern design and traditional patterns. The mixture of the two starts from the entrance of the building where we can see a part of a Korean traditional wall between two exposed concrete.
Looking at the entrance I wondered… What if the eneterence shows a strong sense of traditional style and then shows the modernity of the museum? Perhaps this contrast enables the visitors to feel more dynam ics within the building. Thus, USing photoshop, I presented an entrance that embraces the traditional shapes of korean architecture.
Biotopia. The origin of the name Biotopia comes from two words: Bio Synopsis and Utopia. The two words blend and form a meaning that it is an ecological and recre ational housing complex where you can rest your body and mind. Regarding the origin of the hous ing complex where the museum is located, we can infer the purpose of the museum, which is not for simple aesthetics, but for visitors to rest your mind and body by look ing at nature.
The Water Museum is well known for what the visitors say— “the satisfying museum out of three”. Water museum is a rectan gular room with a shallow depth of the pool. The room with water has a round open roof allowing direct light entering in a circle shape. As the sun moves throughout the day, the angle of light entering the room completely changes. This consequently changes the colour,
Water, Wind, Stone
If we imagine a typical museum, we often see an endless displayal of flamboyant contemporary arts or serene fine arts. To some extent, we also imagine 3-D art including sculptures and digital displays. However, in the Water Wind Rock Museum, it overturns the typical image that we used to draw of a museum. Water Wind Rock Museum is a space where it does not display contemporary art nor 3-D displayal, but rather it is a space made for the audience to feel the each component: wind, water and rock.
The Water Wind Rock Museum is separated in three sections with each component. Each section is widely spread over a housing complex named
Museum
lighting, and mood of the room throughout the day. Itami Jun met aphorically presented this room as a canvas, where the drawing can change as the room changes through time.
The Wind Museum is well known for the auditory senses. As we can infer from its name, Wind Museum is located in a place where the wind often reaches a strong level. It is composed of the narrow columns of cherry wood. Itami Jun has designed its structure of woods and gaps to accentuate the sound of wind as well. During mid sum mer, when all greenery flourish, the colour of wood harmoniously conforms with the vivid colours of vegetation, making the audience feel the exotic nature. Due to its unique and exotic view during summer, Wind Museum is recom mended to visit in between May to August.
Ultimately, The Stone Museum is well known for the usage of light. At first glance, The Stone Museum may seem like a rebrown rusted iron box. However, entering the room, we can see a single beam of light in the room and a flat balck stone. The light comes from a transparent whole at the ceiling. Itami Jun has designed the beam of light to be at the stone at exactly 1PM. Flashback to the outlook, it seems like a rusted box. This is due to the nature of chemical reaction with air and metal. Before rusting, it seemed more of a yellow coloured room. This was also in Itami Jun’s plans. Itami Jun wanted the Stone Museum to change over time just as human and nature changes over time.
Yumin Art Nouveau Collection & Phoenix Island Glass House
Yumin Art Nouveau Collection and the Glass House, both designed by Ando Tadao, are two buildings located within the area of Seop jikoji located at the east coast of Jeju Island. In the square where the Yumin Art Nouveau Collec tion and the Glass house can be seen at once, the scenery of two artificial constructions harmon ising with the extensive sea and islands provide a majestic view, attracting tourists.
Reaching the Yumin Art Nouveau Collection, the first scene that greets the visitors is three gar dens with themes of rocks, women and wind. Jeju’s “Three Abundances” (wind, women, rocks) are three components that are signified by local Jeju people and are what symbolize Jeju Island. Ando laying out such gardens reflects how he values nature as part of his architecture.
Passing three gardens, Byeokcheon Falls ap pears. The area is specifically designed by Ando to amplify the sound of water splashes, stimulating the senses of sight and sound.
Passing the area of water, visi tors walk through Skywalk, a path way leading to the underground exhibition hall. Skywalk elongates around the exterior of the main exhibition building, often turning vertically. Reaching the corners of each Skywalk, the amplified water sound dramatically decreases and ends up muting when visitors reach the entrance.
Opening door of the exhibition hall, Art Nou veau’s Glass Craft, a trendy art in Europe in the 1890s, is displayed. The transparent glass craft followed by minimal lighting gives a luxurious display. Mushroom Lamp (Les Coprins), crafted by Emille Galle—a pioneer of art nouveau—is one of the most named masterpieces within the exhibi tion.
Unlike the Yumin Art Nouveau Collection, which is an underground structure, the Glass House is built on ground facing the eastern sea. One trait that the Glass House has is the contrast
I don’t believe architecturehastospeak too much. It should remain silent and let natureintheguise ofsunlightandwind.”
- Ando Tadao
between back and front side of the building. The backside of the Glass House seems simply like a large building. However, the front view of it gives an image that it is opening its arm, as if welcoming the sea. The two elongated glass structures at the top floor make such an image. How the building gives such image echoes Ando’s words: “We bor row from nature the space upon which we build.”
Designed by one of the greatest architects in the world, Ando Tadao, the building’s construction and layout has meanings and purpose. But still I was able to look at an alternative way of designing the Glasshouse. Looking at the back of the Glass house while walking towards the site, I could not feel the openness although the architecture was surrounded by sea. Perhaps it was due to the ex tensive exposed concrete at the back of the build ing. If I were to be Ando, I would try to minimise the use of exposed concrete for this building to give more openness to the visitors.
The new design aims to give more openness to the visitors. By reducing the building into a single story building and getting rid of the back wall structure it will make the visitors approach ing the building to see the ocean. Also, instead of getting rid of the second floor, I plan to roof top area where visitors can take pictures from a higher ground.
Museum of Chusa KIM JEONG HYUI
Museum of Chusa Kim Jeong Hyui is a architectural piece by Korea’s first gen eration architect Seung Hyo Sang to me morialise Kim Jeong Hyui, a renowned artist and scholar in late Chosun Dynasty. Kim was exiled from the mainland of Korea after he accused upperclassmen of being corrupt. He is seen as a historic figure as well as a figure of honesty and justice. As part of his monument, the site of construction is the exact place where Kim was exiled.
Seung Hyo Sang is an architect known for preserving the old traces of surround ings and blending into the mood that the area has, rather than building a flamboyant landmark. In the museum, he success fully makes it naturally blend with the surroundings. The general structure of the museum resembles typical shapes of Jeju’s traditional storage. However, at the same time, Seunghyo Sang is an architect who emphasises the modernity of build ings. Here, he uses metal beams on the roof to give a sense of modernity. Inter estingly, overall inspiration came from Sehando, a drawing by Kim.
Inside the exhibition hall are works of Kim’s Korean traditional paint. After the exhibition hall catches visitor’s sights, the second floor has the extraordinary view. The interior of the second floor is mainly exposed concrete. Here, Seung Hyo Sang makes the bottom few centimeters a glass, enabling light to come in through small beem at the foot level. Moreover, Sang places a single circle as seen in the Sehando. The darkness of exposed concrete and soft light that comes in form a perfect spot for a memorable picture.
Although the museum may not be a landmark of Jeju, the message and pur pose of the architecture memorialise a renown scholar and artist, as well as a fig ure of justice. Morvoer, it is a point to see how Seung Hyo Sang highlighted how it does not stand out of the surrounding buildings, preventing any visual displea sure.
