The Winners!
SENSE-SATIONAL LIVING 2024
First Prize Winners
Seung Tak Hyun, Hee Min Boo
South Korea
Seungtak Hyun, an interior design student at Sangmyung University, has been deeply exploring the concept of experiential housing, especially as residential spaces expand and evolve due to rapid social changes.
Heemin Boo, a senior majoring in Interior Design at Sangmyung University, has a strong personal interest in housing, as it is the space most closely connected to daily life.
Introduction
Seungtak Hyun : Hello. I'm Seungtak Hyun, an interior design student at Sangmyung University. As the concept of residential space is expanding and constantly evolving due to rapid social changes, experiential housing is a topic I have been exploring with deep interest. Therefore, I decided to participate in the Sense-sational Living - Experiential Home Design Architecture Competition, thinking that participating in this competition would be an opportunity to move to a broader stage, gain various experiences, and exercise my challenging spirit.
Heemin Boo : Hello. I'm Heemin Boo, a senior majoring in Interior Design at Sangmyung University. Housing is the space that is most closely connected to our daily lives, and it is a field that I am personally very interested in. Therefore, the theme of the Sense-sational Living - Experiential Home Design Architecture Competition intrigued me. I decided to participate because the process of envisioning and proposing a creative and innovative design for an experiential home would be an important opportunity for me to discover new ideas and deepen my ability to solve complex problems.
Design Concept
SeungTak Hyun : Our site is located on Jeju, a volcanic island in South Korea. My teammates and I were all born and raised on Jeju Island, so we feel we have a strong understanding of the site. We approached the project as if we were designing our own home. Jeju Island is a volcanic island that was formed by volcanic activity. In Korea, the monogenetic volcanoes on Jeju Island are called oreum. An oreum is a cone-shaped volcanic body formed by the accumulation of volcanic debris from an explosive eruption centered on a crater. They are distributed throughout Jeju Island, centered on Hallasan Mountain, and Jeju Islanders have a close relationship with Oreum, saying that they are born in Oreum and return to Oreum. It is said that each Oreum contains the heart and soul of the Jeju people. In our pursuit of capturing the true essence of Jeju Island's volcanic terrain, we envisioned the house as an extension of the island itself, taking cues from the natural curves of the oreum. Dividing the residence into four distinct realms—living, meditation, multimedia, and sensory spaces—we organically integrated each area to mirror the gentle slopes of an oreum, seamlessly harmonizing the architectural design with the island's innate character. "Olle" is a term originating from the Jeju dialect, denoting a narrow alleyway, typically a winding path leading from a main thoroughfare to the entrance of a dwelling. Given the island's windswept terrain, these alleys are crafted in a curved fashion. We have meticulously designed a sinuous pathway from the roadside to the heart of the residence, ensuring that each step unveils a succession of picturesque oreums, echoing the natural contours of Jeju's landscape.
HeeMin Boo : We wanted to isolate the sensory space in the home as a discrete unit, so that people could fully immerse themselves in the senses for as long as they were in the space. We designed the sensory space as a space that has the potential to change infinitely with nature, rather than being limited by bringing elements of nature into the space. This allows people to have a new experience every time they enter. We divided the senses we wanted to stimulate people into three main categories: the sense of sight, touch, and smell. In the sensory space, you can observe the light coming in through the skylights and the basalt walls changing over time. These changes create a visual delight. And you can feel the wind blowing through the basalt on your skin. Feeling the wind through your body stimulates your sense of touch. On the bench in the center of the space, we sprayed basalt stones with aromatic oils to create an eco-friendly diffuser where you can smell the scents. In our design, only the walls of the sensory room feature gabion structures. A gabion is a structure made of wire mesh filled with stone. The strong wire mesh and solid stone make this structure very robust, and the fact that it can be partially repaired makes maintenance cheap and easy. A stone called basalt is readily available on Jeju Island. Basalt is used to make the gabion structure, and the wire mesh and filler used can be recycled. In addition, as the stone absorbs heat during the day, it is naturally released through the cooler air in the evening. This insulates and regulates the temperature throughout the building, making it self-regulating and environmentally friendly. The lower part of the gabion structure is designed to have a higher density of stones, while the upper part has a lower density. This design allows for a decrease in density from bottom to top, resulting in an increasing amount of light entering the space as it ascends. Additionally, this structure enhances overall stability. This environmentally friendly sensory space creates a new and colorful experience for residents and visitors.
Sensory Architecture Significance
Seungtak Hyun : Architecture is a field that takes into account many different factors, with a particular emphasis on human expectations and sensory aspects. Before entering a space, people naturally anticipate what will greet them, and when this anticipation turns into satisfaction, they feel the space dynamically. Therefore, when designing a sensory residence, light is utilized to create a sense of infinite change in the space, and it is designed to be experienced sensually.
HeeMin Boo : Sensory architecture requires a holistic approach that engages the senses: sight, touch, sound, smell, and more. We conceived of the design as a reflection of the human need for constant renewal, and explored various ways to achieve this, such as utilizing stone as a natural material and designing low windows to allow natural light to enter the space. This approach ensures that the sensory elements are in harmony, allowing users to experience rich and varied sensory satisfaction when interacting with the space.
Sustainability Integration
Seungtak Hyun : With sustainability in mind, we carefully studied different materials and found stones with sustainable properties that were also structurally applicable. In particular, we chose basalt, which is readily available in the region and has excellent harmony with the environment, and designed the main structural elements of the sensory space in this material. This approach contributes to the realization of a design that is oriented towards a sustainable future, and enhances the durability and aesthetic value of the architecture at the same time as it fulfills environmental responsibility.
HeeMin Boo : Sustainability should always be considered an important factor in contemporary design, and it's a principle that applies to the design process of any space, not just the current project. We wanted the spaces we design to be sustainable beyond their temporary use, and to be places that people can continue to use for the long term. To achieve this goal, the choice of materials was essential. We believe that the process of constantly exploring sustainable materials and incorporating them into our designs is key to creating innovative and forward-thinking spaces. In Oreum house, we utilized basalt, a sustainable material, for the gabion structure. Moving forward, it is our priority to design spaces that provide value and functionality that will stand the test of time, taking into account the sustainability and environmental impact of materials.
Design Evolution
Seungtak Hyun : In the early stages, we started to think about what kind of site would be ideal for an experiential home that engages the senses. Then, we remembered our visit to Jeju's Jersey Culture and Artists Village, an artist colony. Jersey Culture and Artists Village is an area with a unique cultural flavor, where famous artists gather and produce their works. The village is not only for the residents. The town, nestled amidst serene natural surroundings, offers a tranquil environment conducive to deep sensory immersion and focus. Once the site was selected, the natural features and elements of the volcanic island of Jeju were incorporated into the design. Jeju Island has developed a unique residential culture based on its geology as a volcanic island. In our pursuit of capturing the true essence of Jeju Island's volcanic terrain, we envisioned the house as an extension of the island itself, taking cues from the natural curves of the oreum. Dividing the residence into four distinct realms—living, meditation, multimedia, and sensory spaces—we organically integrated each area to mirror the gentle slopes of an oreum, seamlessly harmonizing the architectural design with the island's innate character. Among them, the sensory space is designed as a gabion structure utilizing basalt, which has the advantage of being environmentally friendly. Basalt, which is readily available on Jeju Island, is used to make the gabion structure, and the wire mesh and filling materials used can be recycled. While designing the house, we also considered the environmental aspects and wanted to realize a sustainable design.
HeeMin Boo : One design technique that has played a pivotal role in our project is sketching, which allows us to visually record and understand the evolution of our designs, rather than simply expressing ideas that pop into our heads. In the early stages, we tried a variety of visual approaches through free-form, improvisational sketching, which allowed us to freely explore forms and components, intuitively analyze problems, and explore creative solutions. As the project progressed, we visually refined specific improvements based on our initial sketches, layering alternatives to arrive at the optimal design. Throughout this process, sketches played a key role in elaborating on the complex elements of the design beyond simple initial representations of ideas.
Community and Environmental Impact
Seungtak Hyun : Emotional empathy and good design are inextricably linked. Great spatial design provides an immersive, sustainable, and emotionally resonant experience for occupants. A key benefit of immersive design is the continuity and organic flow of the space, allowing occupants to interact with the space naturally and without physical boundaries. The Oreum house was designed with these principles in mind, so that users are fully immersed in the space and the physical environment is naturally integrated into their daily routine. In addition, various elements of the space, such as color, lighting, and texture, can have a direct impact on the emotional state of the occupants. As a result, design plays a key role in all aspects of the immersion, sustainability, and emotional resonance that a space can provide for its occupants.
HeeMin Boo : Spatial design is more than just organizing the physical environment; it has a profound positive impact on the people and places around it. Well-designed spaces improve the quality of human life, foster social interaction, and reflect the character of a community, enriching the overall atmosphere and experience. Designers need to deeply understand and consider the needs and expectations of users while planning the form and function of a space. In this process, the space becomes more than just a backdrop, but an active stage on which users engage and interact. The design of a space creates opportunities for people to live, work, and interact there, and through these interactions, the space naturally forms and develops relationships with its users. Designers and users play an important role in the design process, sharing their perspectives and creating stories together. Designers provide creative and innovative solutions to clarify the purpose and function of the space, while users provide feedback based on their experiences and needs to shape the final form of the space. This collaborative approach ensures that spaces are not just physical structures, but living places that capture and reflect people's stories. As a result, spatial design strengthens the relationship between people and their environment, creating meaningful and valuable experiences for all participants as they co-create stories together. We believe that spaces designed through this interaction are constantly changing and evolving, becoming environments that positively impact people through deep connections with their users.
Guidance for Aspiring Designers
Seungtak Hyun : Although I am still in the early stages of my career as a designer, I believe it is very important to have a deep connection with the space and to think carefully about it whenever I am working on a project. In particular, it is essential to consider the space from the user's point of view and to be mindful of how the space can be maintained in a sustainable way. In the field of sensory living architecture, a key element of a successful design is to be in harmony with its surroundings, while being creative and sustainable. Therefore, designers should take a creative and innovative approach to understanding the nature of the space, and pursue a design that is both environmentally responsible and engaging for the user. This approach will go beyond short-term gratification and contribute to the value and sustainability of the space in the long run.
HeeMin Boo : I believe that a sensitive and delicate sense of touch is essential in order to remain passionate about this field of design, as it requires us to carefully consider the different needs of users and the perspectives of others. By always maintaining a different level of sensitivity than most people, we are able to closely analyze and reflect on the complexities and subtleties of design. We believe that this sensitivity has played an important role in the successful outcome of our projects. Therefore, as a designer, you need to go beyond creative ideas and closely understand the different experiences of people, and take a sensitively sophisticated approach to design, in order to perfect your designs and ensure the success of your projects.
Reflections on Winning
Seungtak Hyun : Winning the Sense-sational Living - Experiential Home Design Architecture Competition will go down as one of the most joyful and memorable moments of my life. Many designers work on projects with passion, but only a few of them achieve outstanding results. Of course, results are important, but I believe that developing your own unique sense of design and personality is more important than anything else. In order to succeed in the design field, it is essential to constantly develop your own unique style and color beyond just results. I believe that designs with this personal touch and individuality can truly create innovation and value. Therefore, I hope that other designers will follow my lead and continue to develop their own unique sense of design and style, and continue to do creative and meaningful work.
HeeMin Boo : Winning first place in the Sense-sational Living - Experiential Home Design Architecture Competition was a very exciting moment for me. It is a great honor to be recognized in a designer competition such as this, and I take great pride in the fact that my design sense has been positively evaluated. I believe that I have an excellent sense of design, and I think that this confidence is naturally reflected in every step of the project, which plays an important role in creating outstanding results. This trust and confidence is a key element of design, which allows for the successful completion of a project. Therefore, I hope that other designers will always approach their design work with confidence, and continue to believe in their own unique sense and creativity.
Second Prize Winners
Linzi Tao, Xi Zhou and Yiheng Li
China
Third Prize Winners
Nicolás Weir Restrepo
Colombia
Nicolás Weir Restrepo is a Colombian architect with a master's degree in aesthetics and serves as a full-time professor at the Faculty of Architecture at Santo Tomás University in Medellín. He is deeply interested in architecture as it originally is: a human discipline that is dreamlike, rigorous, and profound.
Introduction
I am Nicolás Weir Restrepo, a Colombian architect, master in aesthetics, and full-time professor at the Faculty of Architecture at the Santo Tomás University in Medellín. I am interested in architecture as it originally is: a human discipline, and therefore, dreamlike, rigorous, and profound. I was attracted to the Sense-sational Living competition because it served as the ideal stage to express my personal concerns about housing as an expression of human inhabitation. This habitation, of course, had to have a close look at the sensory experience of spaces. Thus, whatever the proposal, it had to consider human action as the starting point.
Design and Concept
My project was the "Heliocentric House," which consists of an almost blind architectural piece that prioritizes the interior over the exterior. It is a rectangular concrete prism, perforated in the center of the roof by an element I called the "Light Impluvium." This perforation traverses a void around which the program is distributed, organized in a vertical gradient that defines the social (at the lowest part) and the private (at the highest part). This design first posits that architecture is inhabited, and then that the spaces promote that inhabitation. With this in mind, the starting point was recognizing one of the great needs of our time: the return to the self. Contemporary life, not only in architecture, promotes a distancing from ourselves, forcing us to resemble each other more and more, flattening differences, and diminishing identities. This house had to enable the encounter with oneself, allowing the inhabitant to define themselves as an individual, that is, to consolidate their identity. The spaces, therefore, seek for the inhabitant to be self-aware. They partially isolate them from the world, confront them with the conscious use of architecture, and bring them back to the body. Thus, the order of the spaces is defined by the tracing of relationships so that the inhabitant recognizes themselves.
Sensory Meaning of Architecture
First of all, I must say that I believe architecture can affirm or deny what the human being is: an animal that inhabits. I trust more in the architecture that affirms. Now, the "Heliocentric House" had to meet the program. However, it was first necessary to think about what would happen in that program. That is: not to think of a list of spaces but a list of situations. This is to "verbalize" architecture. It's not about designing "The access," but imagining the situations that configure the "Action of accessing." It is not "The window," but "The action of looking," or "Entering the landscape," or "Ventilating," or "Illuminating." As long as the human being participates in these actions, they truly become part of the architecture. The individual and the space "happen" together, and one knows that, for example, that "Action of accessing" is an act that involves their consciousness. The house does not favor one sense but all. It favors the body. After setting up a scenario where things can happen, the development of those events had to be ordered. This is the most visible architectural task of any project but, as seen, it is not the only nor the most important one. The proposal consists of defining horizontal, vertical, and diagonal relationships between spaces. What allows this to happen is, of course, the "Light Impluvium." It is not incorrect to say that light and void are the main materials of this architecture.
Sustainable Integration
The "Heliocentric House" also works with common sense. This sense tells us that some systems must function in specific ways to make the most of them. The bathroom, for example, understanding all the actions it implies, cannot be a single element. As a system, it requires its parts to be independent but related. On the roof is the water tank, which gravity feeds to the shower, which in turn waters (with residual water) and supplies the toilet cistern on the lower level. Common sense tells us that this relationship must be vertical and that gravity confirms it. Thus, this is what sustainability in architecture is about. It is not, as some believe, about attaching gadgets to the building to force systems that common sense could have previously solved. The best solutions tend to be the simplest. Common sense is the simplest answer to the problems we judge most complex. A more sustainable future will be one that embraces common sense. In architecture, this translates into understanding the different systems, that is, the spatial relationships, and proposing different orders that are coherent from part to whole. Sustainability is another name we give to the coherence of buildings.
Design Evolution
As a professor at the faculty, I am always in constant contact with architectural literature. I am sure that, with what I have said so far, someone will have found resonances with the thoughts of some famous architects. Well, the various readings I have done throughout my career have sown some professional concerns. One of those concerns germinated in the desire to independently participate in an international competition. So first came the question: What makes a house a house? Then I found a challenge that allowed me to explore an answer. In addition, I have a great affection for Japanese culture. I studied its shadows and silences; its actions within buildings; its common sense; its awareness of causes and effects; its cleanliness; its geometric forcefulness; its discretion; its relationship with the horizon and verticality; its awareness of the body. I established that in these reflections there were tools with which I could start working and, over time, I understood that in the face of such a broad question, there are only two paths: an equally broad answer that would return us to the starting point; or many small answers that would allow us to take a step forward. The "Heliocentric House," but also other houses proposed by other contestants, are those small answers.
Some of my classes are about geometry and drawing. The development of this answer, that is, its materialization, began with all kinds of drawings. The most important was one I made of a person crouched over themselves. It is in one of the project sheets. What makes a house a house is, for example, its ability to resemble a person crouched over themselves. And in that recognition of the "self" is where the richest part of this project begins, for as I have said, the question of the self was what triggered the definition of the different relationships that were later translated into spatial orders.
Community and Impact on the Environment
I live in an area near the second most important city in my country. Here there are several towns very close to each other, each with its well-defined identity. The climate is pleasant all year round. There are no large densely populated urban areas and there is still a sense of respect for nature. The landscape is rich in topography, hydrography, fauna, and flora. The house could be practically anywhere in this territory. When a place offers so many benefits, the important thing is not where, but how. Therefore, I proposed a design that adapts to the topography but also embraces it through the access patio, in a gesture of mediation between the exterior and the interior. As the house steps down, it defines the isolation that will allow the encounter with the self. For the same reason, it is implanted far from neighbors, in an area near the municipality of El Retiro, controlling its relationship with the outside. I emphasize that this house is designed to be inhabited inwardly. This does not exclude the possibility of looking outside, but this is done at specific moments and in specific ways. The greatest connection with the outside is achieved through the "Impluvium," as the relationship is mainly vertical and allows the contemplation of the passage of time through the colors and intensities of the lights that vary throughout the day. I have said that this house does not define spaces but actions. Well, this means that the "Impluvium" should not be thought of as a unitary fact. This integrates what we very limitedly call dining room, kitchen, living room, patio, library, bathroom, balcony, bedroom, shower, or dressing room. Light, heat, air, color, and sound are invitations for things to happen. One can lean over the parapet of an upper level and discover that, around the void, the other rooms participate in a game between up and down, light and shadow, heat and cold. That is holistic architecture. It is not the sum of parts but their relationships. Only then will, for example, degrees of intimacy, hierarchies, expansions, contractions, flexibilities be defined.
Guidance for Aspiring Designers
I recommend that other designers define the questions they want to answer with their practice. But I also recommend that they offer not one but many solutions. When time passes and we have matured, we may understand that the architect's profession never ends; and that it is not about finding the truth but believing that one day we will. Architecture is not a goal but a path. In this sense, a design will be successful as long as it offers a coherent answer to a well-formulated question. That it understands, first, inhabiting as the way we are in the world and, second, that this way of being materializes, supports, and promotes itself every time architecture appears.
Reflections on Winning
I tend to be a skeptical person. My ambition with this competition was to understand something about housing. I proposed one way (among countless ways) to answer a question that, of course, I will continue to ask. The result of this competition is a motivation to continue. It is also confirmation that many of us are concerned with similar issues. This is gratifying and means we are doing something right. Finally, I not only see it as possible but necessary for immersive, multisensory, and living spaces to have a presence in contemporary architecture. This type of competition explores the possibility that, increasingly, we consider different ways of inhabiting. Our responsibility, as architects, is to recognize this possibility, explore it, and turn it into an opportunity to materialize a truly human architecture.
Special mention
Honorable mention
Siddhant Gupta, Niraj sonowal
Sneha S Guragol, Sakshi Rajesh & Iqra Tayaba
Ronnie Daimari
Michal Uryash
Siddhant Gupta, Niraj sonowal
India
Sneha S Guragol, Sakshi Rajesh & Iqra Tayaba
India
Sneha S Guragol
Sneha S Guragol is a 22-year-old student currently studying at BMS School of Architecture in Bangalore, India. She is an aspiring architect with a passion for innovative and sustainable design. With a keen eye for detail and a love for creating functional and aesthetically pleasing spaces, she is eager to explore pushing the boundaries of architecture.
Sakshi Rajesh
Sakshi Rajesh is a 22-year-old student currently studying at BMS School of Architecture in Bangalore, India. She is an aspiring architect and design enthusiast who believes in learning new things from every project and refining her skillset in design. She has a deep interest in traditional vernacular architecture and is committed to designing aesthetically pleasing and functionally relevant spaces.
Iqra Tayaba
Iqra Tayaba is an architecture student at BMS School of Architecture in Bangalore, India. She is passionate about creating detailed and functional designs, with a special focus on residential spaces. She loves the process of transforming houses into homes by connecting with people and understanding their unique needs. Her approach emphasizes the functionality of each space, ensuring it enhances the lives of those who live there. As an aspiring architect, she is dedicated to making a meaningful impact through her designs.
Ronnie Daimari
India
Michal Uryash
U.S.
Michal Uryash, the designer behind the Ethereal House Project, has recently graduated from Florida International University with a Master’s in Architecture. This project is a culmination of her five year design experience executed in a project which is close to her heart and embraces her passions of materials of the future and an occupants experience within the world of architecture. Michal Uryash currently resides in Miami, Florida where she works part time as a construction document drafter, while on the side taking individual projects and studying for her architectural licensing exams. Michal hopes to continue to be creative and help people materialize their wildest dreams through architecture.
