A varied group of buildings have been built where once stood a Diesel Engine Factory in Changchun, China. Designed by Beijing & Seoul based architects CHIASMUS, redevelopment of the site focused on the preservation of the existing spatial experience over the actual buildings. The result is a neighborhood that remembers its industrial past through its scale, layout and materials.

In many ways the conversion of the old factory site in Changchun is a typical post-industrial redevelopment that includes saving some exemplar buildings and adding contemporary functions. These former factories seldom have a lasting architectural quality, but in spatial and dogmatic organization they represent a defining age in China worth keeping.

Located in North-East China, Changchun - sometimes called the “Detroit of China” because of its automotive industry – has been an important industrial city for the last 100 year. The site is on the border of Changchun’s city center, one block east of the Yitsong river.

Standing next to the East expressway the project is on a visually prominent position among a monoculture of new residential towers. By introducing a varied architectural group of buildings and functions organized around a pedestrian street CHIASMUS created a memorable civic space for nearby residents.

James Wei Ke said: “With this project we developed a successful evolutionary neighborhood. The fact that a former industrial center can be transformed into a case study of how work and life can be combined in this post-industrial era represents a small triumph for the developer and the city.

Developed by Vanke in subsequent stages since 2011, each building was developed as an interdependent element. Representation is found in the materiality of the buildings: steel for the old factory, brick for the offices and plaster for the residential tower. A returning visual feature is the customized windows with high insulation glass that provide the buildings with a generous amount of daylight inside while deeper indoors intimate spaces allow for more privacy. This concept complements a variety of spatial qualities and creates comfortable places to work and live.

Chiasmus Partners is an atelier office founded in New York City in 2005. It is now based in Beijing and Seoul.

CHIASMUS

This Recently completed Deep House (House with Deep Wall) is the culmination of 6-year-long pursuit and determination of its architect Homin Kim. Credit for successful completion of the daunting task goes to Kim’s ambitious vision to situate a modern and practical residence in challenging landscape backed by unwavering support and trust of the client. Most striking feature of the Deep House is its roof, slanted at an angle, which streamlines flawless as walls as a single unit.

By opting against conventional use of the concept of roof and eaves and adopting exterior stone louvers, volume of the Deep House is dispersed in shallow depth throughout. Hollow space created underneath the slanted roof and the vertical walls is designed to serve not only as a layer of insulation improving the energy efficiency but also extra storage space.

Another noticeable feature of the Deep House is its use of corner windows. Once the layout of the rooms was confirmed, corners of the rooms were left exposed by installing box-type windows. Rooms and the size of corner windows were strategically laid out to allow maximum benefit of the spectacular scenery from inside while minimizing adverse impact of chilly winter draft.

It also manifests the most important element of spatial concept: micro space. Corner windows are ‘window space’ but also creates ‘room inside room’ not separated by any physical boundary of walls. The room may appear as one space, but we can clearly perceive that an independent space exists there. Kim was aware of people’s inclination to find corner space cozy and useful regardless of the size of their homes, and he wanted to utilize that instinct.

Deep House project was a process of searching creative solutions to work around seemingly conflicting elements such as efficiency and style, function and form and necessity and redundancy. Factors that may seem irrelevant are assigned with critical functions in greater context. Kim highlighted that the Deep House project was his attempt to challenge the dogma of modernism that “Form follows Function” and propose creative alternatives.

Architects : poly.m.ur Location : Seoul, South Korea Architect in Charge : Homin Kim Design Team : Sunki Hwang, Hyunju Lim Area : 647.71 m2 Project Year : 2016 Manufacturers : Rheinzink, Lime, pine-wood Contractor : Ean R&C Structural Engineer : Thekujo

Poly.m.ur

Homunculus, 2018 Glass, Gold Leaf 24k, W10" D12 H12"

Today, humans have entered into a contemporary society that values a marked individuality, but the parent’s generation, which controls the society, is still conservative. Parents want to get satisfaction from their children by infusing their values. The children meanwhile are in chaos, confused between a rapidly changing society and the conservative values of their parents.

Toys represent the purity and innocence of childhood and it is through this purity and innocence of toys that people have some of their most profound experiences in life.

TICKYTACKY /PINK#314 2015 Glass, W9.5" D9.5" H7.5"

If we use children as an analog for toys, then society can be thought of as a factory that produces inferior toys (children) with only the goal of gaining the highest profits (producing adults that will be good earners). Through my artwork, I want to express that children in Korea today are like mass produced toys. They are meant to be all exactly alike, lacking individuality and quality of character, a whole society of people who are easily replaceable and hold little value as individuals, just like mass produced plastic toys or paper dolls.

Namdoo Kim is a contemporary artist with a focus in Critical-Pop Art. He has a very individual and personal voice within his body of work. Using a sense of sarcasm and pop-style resources, he is revealing political problems of Korea.

He is dealing with critical aspects of contemporary Korean society and its effect on people, particularly the relationship between children and parents. He uses products for children, such as toys and dolls, as vehicles for symbolism in his body of work. Now he is focusing on creating authenticity and depth in his work criticizing the social norms in South Korea and showing the differences and similarities compared to cultures around the world.

Originally from South Korea, Namdoo Kim currently is studying his Ph.D. research at The Australian National University. Kim received a BFA in glass and ceramic at Hong-ik University in Seoul, South Korea, before earning his MFA in glass at Rochester Institute of Technology, NY in 2013. His work has been featured in exhibitions around the world. He also had been selected as an Artist in Residency at Pilchuck Glass School and Corning Museum of Glass.

Namdoo Kim