Mimesis Museum
Photo: Duccio Malagamba
The Mimesis Museum, housing a book publisher’s private art collection, is located in Paju Book City, a new town 30 km from Seoul.
Photo: Duccio Malagamba
Photo: Duccio Malagamba
The flowing concrete form, that wraps around a central courtyard, was inspired by a sketch of a cat that Siza drew upon arriving at the site.
| With that sketch, the idea for the building was there, drawn in one movement, one gesture |
| /Carlos Castanheira |
Photo: Duccio Malagamba
Photo: Duccio Malagamba
Photo: Duccio Malagamba
The walls are almost windowless with most of the light coming through rafted ceilings, whose shapes form a counterpoint to the curved walls, with skylights spilling out from over their edges. The walls and ceilings are whitewashed, the floors marble and oak.
Photo: Duccio Malagamba
Photo: Duccio Malagamba
Photo: Duccio Malagamba
Photo: Duccio Malagamba
Sketch courtesy Álvaro Siza
Model photo courtesy Álvaro Siza
Drawing courtesy Álvaro SizaSite Plan
Drawing courtesy Álvaro SizaGround Floor Plan
Drawing courtesy Álvaro SizaFirst Floor Plan
Drawing courtesy Álvaro SizaSecond Floor Plan
Drawing courtesy Álvaro SizaRoof Plan
Drawing courtesy Álvaro SizaSections
The three-story building has services in the basement, temporary exhibition galleries and reception on the ground floor, overlooked by a mezzanine with a cafeteria and staff area, and the main exhibition spaces on the first floor.
Paju Book City was designed in 1999 by the Architecture Research Unit dedicated to the publishing industry.
| I didn’t have as much context as I would like with which I could create a dialogue, I only had a site plan, so I had to concentrate on creating an atmosphere for the building. |
| /Álvaro Siza (Referring to the problem of building for a new town where your neighbors haven’t even been designed yet.) |
INFORMATION
| CITY | Paju Book City |
| CONSTRUCTION YEAR | 2009 |
| ARCHITECT | Álvaro Siza Arquitecto Carlos Castanheira & Jun Sung Kim |
