This project is situated in Ganjelgot, South Korea, renowned for being the location of the earliest sunrise. The site is adjacent to land reserved for a future community park, which limits further development. Positioned on the highest hill in the area, the building is farthest from the existing commercial facilities in Ganjelgot. A public parking lot is located nearby, and these site conditions played a crucial role in our design approach.
Functionally, the client required a commercial building. Initially intended as a personal coffee shop, the plan evolved during construction into a franchise store combined with a homestay operated by the owner. Our design not only addresses these functional needs but also aims to raise public awareness of architecture by offering a commercial space for visitors to the community park and Ganjelgot, while seamlessly integrating into the park as a cultural complex.
With budget constraints in mind, we avoided constructing a massive building. Instead, we created spaces between structures to foster interaction with the outdoors and ensure the building remains recognizable from any direction. This design process naturally led to a pentagonal layout. The building’s undirected architectural features allow visitors to approach and engage with the structure from any point within the community park.
We cleared the irregularly shaped central area to create a café space on the third floor, enabling circular circulation throughout the plan. The functional volume beneath one corner serves as both a homestay and a structural support.
The pentagonal central courtyard enhances the varying gap forms between the first (ground) and second floors, reconnecting with external circulation. This design allows natural light to pass through the hollow spaces and reflect on the water surfaces both inside and outside the first floor, creating a profound and mysterious atmosphere. Our intention is for visitors to experience dynamic changes in light and the ocean’s presence across different interior and exterior spaces.
Visitors are encouraged to move beyond the building’s internal circulation and make use of the diverse indoor and outdoor spaces. This flexibility allows tourists to organize exhibitions, cultural events, and performances. Beyond functioning solely as commercial spaces, the cafés offer venues for cultural exchange. As this community park develops, the building’s potential for growth will likewise increase.
Our design integrates multiple functions and emphasizes circulation within the café space. We envisioned that when Ulju County incorporates this site into a park, the building could serve as an observation deck. Visitors come here to enjoy views of the sea and sunrise, which inspired us to propose a three-story building rather than a single-story structure, with the café located on the third floor—within an 11-meter height limit.
Initially, the owners strongly opposed this idea, fearing it would reduce commercial accessibility. However, after extensive discussions, we persuaded them to embrace the concept. This allowed us to create innovative outdoor spaces on the first and second floors, establishing visual connections between multiple directions around the pentagonal courtyard and the building’s exterior (BIM tutorial).
We hope this pentagonal building serves as a new model, demonstrating the potential of a commercial building to function as a cultural complex that genuinely considers the public and spatial quality, often overlooked in commercial architecture.
Design Drawings:
▲ First Floor Plan
▲ Second Floor Plan
▲ Third Floor Plan
▲ BIM Learning Floor Plan
▲ Elevation View
▲ Elevation View
▲ Elevation View
▲ Sectional View
▲ Sectional View
Project Information:
Architectural Firm: ON Architecture INC
Location: Ulsan, South Korea
Category: Commercial Buildings
Lead Architect: Woongsik Jung
Building Area: 212.25 m²
Project Year: 2016
Photographer: Yoon Joonhwan
Manufacturer: Hunter Douglas
Site Area: 1063.0 m²
Total Building Area: 487.27 m²
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