Architecture Wednesday: The Origami House

I dubbed this one the origami House because that’s what it looks like to me, but the architect calls it “Hwa Hun,” which, in Korean, means “Blooming House.”

The home is located in the heart of Seoul, near the Bukhansan Mountain, and since the shape of the plot of land is an irregular polyhedron the architect decided that should be the shape of the house as well.

In order to satisfy the owner’s requirement for “living in nature,” and to maximize the area of green garden, all the exterior spaces of this house are covered with green plants as well. There are various leveled gardens, a forecourt garden, an inner court garden, a stair garden, a waterfall garden, and a roof garden.

And all of the “skins” of the house, except the road–side skins, are covered with green plants and fruit trees to create a sort of “architectural flower.”

It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, and some of the wonky walls and windows might be hard to handle, but it looks like a living sculpture on an urban hillside; a little garden in the midst of the city.

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