Context is one of the central issues of our work and our approach. Context makes the difference between a replaceable documentation of contemporary forms and self-confident architecture which nevertheless is inseparable from the specific place, use and idea of a building. In the case of Jeongok there were three major contextual sources we concentrated on.

landscape context

The location is surrounded by the Hantan River and a range of mountains. It was important for the client to keep the existing natural landscape and carefully integrate it into the new museum. Of course it is not so easy to create a 5,000 sqm building and keep everything the way it is – so we had to find another way here.

Hantan River Park

programmatic context

On the programmatic side we have an exhibition topic which is very important to mankind in general but on the other hand sometimes challenging, especially to give the required spatial presence to the (rather small) exhibits without exhibiting the space instead of the artefacts.

prehistoric excavations

iconographic context

On the local as well as on the global level the Jeongok-ri prehistoric site needs a visible indication. This indication has to work as a direct entrée as seen from the arriving motorways and at the same time in a more oblique way such as a postcard signature.

visual entree / iconographic signature