ONE CHEONGDAM DONG, PROJECT: DOMINIQUE PERRAULT ARCHITECTURE
In
Seoul, on the south bank of the Hangang River, the bustling business district
of Gangnam meets the historic centre to the north. Here, the urban fabric has
to adapt to business tourism and high-level clientele, offering a modern and
dynamic setting while preserving its historic past. Elegantly called «Ivory
rocks», this 90-meter tower is rooted in the Korean soil, reconstituting a
small landscape on the scale of the plot, where mountains, water and trees
interact. 
The mountain first of all: rather than starting with a
generic tower, «Ivory rocks» splits up to form a coherent but singular whole
made up of rocky megaliths. Water and trees complete the urban landscape of the
plot. The
presence of glass in the upper part of the building ensures greater
sustainability by being equipped with photovoltaic panels.
At
the top, water accompanies the opening of the building’s terrace towards the
sky, like a promontory open onto the city. The water from the roof seems to
trickle down inside the building, to the indoor pools.
This
project, intended to house luxury residential units, a spa, swimming pool,
offices, a restaurant and a showroom, which, alas, was ever actually built, is
still an exemplary model of a skyscraper featuring a combination of innovative stylistic
schemes, high-quality materials, and integration into a mixed urban setting.
Client: Aster Development; Project: Dominique
Perrault Architecte; Local Architect: ANU Architects; Interior design: Gaëlle Lauriot-Prévost; Site
area: 795.2 m²; Built area: 5 488.87 m²; Tower height: 90 m
