Talk about a beautiful building! This international competition-winning design for the Korean Cultural Center in Manhattan is set to begin construction at the end of this year. The New York City studio of SAMOO Archictects PC is responsible for this out of the box (literally) design for the new home for the Korean Cultural Service in NYC. And this elegant addition to the K-Town and Murray Hill neighborhood isn’t just another pretty face(ade) – it will be striving for LEED certification, making it a shining example of sustainable building for the area as well.
To be located on East 32nd Street in Midtown, the eight-story Korea Center will house administration offices, exhibit space, gardens, artist studios, a library, a cafe and a theater for events, lectures and performances. The street facing facade is completely glass, which allows passersby to see into the center and be enticed inward by the street level exhibitions on Korean culture, including music, movies, food, technology and TV dramas.
SAMOO‘s winning design embodies the modern Korean sensibility of innovation in harmony with tradition. Inside, the center is dominated by three sculptural figures made from different materials – ceramic to represent Heaven, terracotta to represent Earth and milled wood to represent Humanity. Along with staying true to Korean sensibilities, the glass facade will allow ample daylighting into the interior reducing the need for artificial light.
+ SAMOO Architects PC
Via Bustler
Did they get any inspiration from the unbuilt Zaha Hadid project in Germany?
http://eng.archinform.net/quellen/83554.htm
As an owner of a luxury condo one block down
on 32nd St. I’m delighted to have such a
beautiful structure as the Korean Cultural
Center in the neighborhood. However, we the
area residents, are worried about the homeless
refuge next to the museum. The residents are
menacing and destroying the area.