SEOUL – MUSÉE NATIONAL DE CORÉE // non construit

In the heart of Seoul, set in a large park, this important museum was conceived as the readable symbol of national identity and history.

To achieve this, the project consists in a pure, floating volume detached from the irregular surfaces of the park. This white entablature houses the galleries and frames four dark piers containing flood-proof reserves. An island surrounded by water.

The park, the lake, the island, the piers, and the entablature together form a whole; the museum project unifies and underpins the park.

A stone avenue cuts through the Museum and opens a monumental gateway to the park, linking the river Han to the south with the view of Mount Nam Sam to the north.

On the island itself, reception areas, amphitheatres, a children’s facility, waterside restaurants, shops, walks and gardens surround the hall of the great pagodas. Kiosks dotted around the island form shelters for strollers in the park, in the Korean tradition.