Golden Print [EN]: Chapter 146

Jo Woon-chan loved visiting Sodam.

It was a cozy and beautifully decorated Korean restaurant in Samcheong-dong. The warm lighting and traditional Korean art made it feel like a comfortable escape from the city.

Unlike the fancier Korean restaurants, Sodam felt like eating at home.

Jo Woon-chan always ordered the Tteokgalbi (grilled short rib patties). So, Woojin and Woon-chan both ordered the Tteokgalbi set meal.

As they waited for their food, they started by talking about everyday things. Soon, the conversation turned to the Wangsimni Parafield project.

Jo Woon-chan was surprised.

“So, your company is working with Bruno Sanchez on the Wangsimni Parafield design?”

“Yes, Professor. It was big news,” Woojin replied.

“I don’t really follow the news,” Jo Woon-chan admitted.

Jo Woon-chan also didn’t know about Woojin’s role in uncovering the corruption at Taeho Construction. He wasn’t interested in news about the world, so he missed the story. If it were during the school year, he might have heard it from other professors. But since it was vacation, he hadn’t been to the university.

After hearing the main points of the story, Woon-chan’s first reaction was:

“What are you, anyway?”

“Huh?” Woojin asked.

“I mean, what kind of freshman…”

“I’m a sophomore now, though,” Woojin corrected him.

Woon-chan, who knew the architecture world well, found Woojin’s stories unbelievable.

It wasn’t that he didn’t believe Woojin.

The stories were just so strange that they seemed impossible to make up.

“So, you’re working with Bruno on the design, and your company is getting someone else to design the pavilion for the lobby?”

“That’s right, Professor,” Woojin confirmed.

Jo Woon-chan was a great architect himself, but he was also interested in famous architects from other countries.

So, the conversation naturally shifted to Bruno Sanchez.

“I think I saw him once at a conference,” Jo Woon-chan said.

“Really?”

“But I didn’t get to talk to him. Could you set up a meeting sometime?” he asked, a hint of eagerness in his voice.

“Of course, Professor. Bruno would be happy to meet you.”

But the real reason for the meeting was more important than those details.

As the food arrived, Jo Woon-chan asked, “So Woojin, why did you want to see me today?”

Woojin, ready for the question, answered quickly, “It’s about the design of my pavilion.”

Jo Woon-chan adjusted his glasses, showing his growing interest.

“You want my advice on the design?”

But then, Jo Woon-chan was taken aback.

Woojin’s next answer was unexpected.

“No. The design is already set.”

“What?”

Woojin continued, “What I need help with, Professor, is how to make my design real.”

Woojin had been planning to talk to Jo Woon-chan about his pavilion design for a long time.

One of the most exciting areas in architecture, Woojin believed, was digital architecture.

Simply put, digital architecture uses computer technology in building design.

But that definition was too broad. Programs like AutoCAD, used in almost all architectural designs, use digital technology.

So, the term ‘digital architecture’ could mean different things.

But in Woojin’s mind, digital architecture meant one clear thing: futuristic buildings with unusual, geometric shapes that couldn’t be made with regular blueprints.

It meant using ‘Digital Fabrication’ – creating unique building parts with digital technology and putting them together.

Like the DDP (Dongdaemun Design Plaza) in Seoul, with its flowing, curved design.

“Digital Fabrication, huh…” Jo Woon-chan murmured.

In the future, many famous buildings would be built this way.

Of course, traditional architecture would still be valued for its artistic and emotional qualities.

But Woojin was most interested in digital architecture. The pavilion was a perfect chance for him to start exploring this field.

Buildings have to consider human needs, but a pavilion, where looks are more important than function, allowed for more freedom.

Woojin wanted to learn digital fabrication techniques from Jo Woon-chan.

He wanted to know how to use digital fabrication to make his design real.

And he needed to learn how to use the tools.

Woojin planned to spend his first semester of sophomore year studying this.

He would still work at WJ Studio, but the team could handle the time-consuming tasks.

“I know it’s not easy,” Woojin said.

Woon-chan nodded. “It’s definitely not an easy field.”

“But I think it’s possible,” Woojin insisted.

“Really?”

“Digital fabrication isn’t just about complicated techniques, is it?”

“That’s right. You can do great things with simple techniques,” Woon-chan agreed.

“I want to learn as much as I can,” Woojin said.

Professor Jo Woon-chan was very surprised by Woojin’s passion.

“But Woojin,” he asked.

“Yes, Professor?”

“How did you even find out about this?”

Woojin seemed to know more than just that the field existed. He seemed to understand how digital fabrication was used in architecture.

A sophomore wanting to learn about digital architecture, which wasn’t even taught in most universities, was unusual.

Even most professors didn’t know about it, except for Jo Woon-chan.

And yet, Woojin knew.

Woojin, who had expected Woon-chan’s surprise, answered calmly, “I’ve been paying close attention in the 3D tool classes since last year.”

“You… you have.”

“I’m good at using those tools,” Woojin explained.

“That’s why you paid so much attention in my class, right?”

“That’s right, Professor.”

Woojin paused. “As I studied architectures that use these tools, I learned about digital architecture.”

It wasn’t a lie that he was good with 3D tools.

Even with his passion, if he hadn’t been interested in 3D tools, he wouldn’t have been able to study so hard.

Of course, he hadn’t learned about digital architecture because of the tools, but he changed the story a little so Jo Woon-chan would understand.

Silence followed Woojin’s explanation.

Click-

Jo Woon-chan picked up his chopsticks, ate a side dish, and then spoke slowly. “Woojin, no one has ever surprised me like you have.”

Woojin waited for his next words.

He felt a little embarrassed by the praise. He thought Woon-chan was impressed by knowledge he had gained from the future.

But he was wrong.

“It’s easy to be curious about something. But to passionately explore it… that’s rare.”

Jo Woon-chan admired Woojin’s passion, not just his knowledge.

“That’s why I’m so happy,” he said with a smile.

His abilities, his reputation, their professor-student relationship – none of it mattered.

Woon-chan was sure that Woojin’s passion was real, and that was enough.

Jo Woon-chan reached out his hand to Woojin. “If I can help, I will.”

“Thank you, Professor!”

“But I hope that someday, you’ll be able to help me too.”

Woojin, moved by Woon-chan’s words, took his hand.

He thought he knew him well, but he realized Woon-chan was an even deeper person than he had thought.

“I’ll make that happen!” Woojin vowed silently.

‘I can’t let Professor down.’

He would become an architect who could share his passion with Woon-chan as equals.