Golden Print [EN]: Chapter 292

Places often get their names from the land around them. Think of places named after rivers, mountains, or sunshine. Magok is one such place.

Magok is located in the Gangseo area. In the past, this area was called Jae Chapai, which means “hole rock” because of a cave near the Han River.

Yangcheon-gu and Gangseo-gu are now separate, but they used to be one area in western Seoul.

The name changed to Gongam during the Silla Dynasty and then to Yangcheon-hyeon during the Goryeo Dynasty.

Yangcheon means “bright sunshine and flowing streams,” a beautiful name that fits the area’s geography.

Mountains stretch from Gwanak in the southeast to Gyeyang in the west, and the Han River flows through the sunny land.

That is Magok.

“Magok is the best location in the old Yangcheon area, perfectly matching its name,” Woojin said.

A map of Seoul appeared on the screen, and Woojin pointed to it.

“Magok deserves the name Yangcheon more than the current Yangcheon-gu, which is not close to the Han River.”

Woojin showed images of Magok, sharing the story of its beautiful natural scenery.

Why did Woojin start his presentation this way?

“The Spanish architect Antonio Gaudi said, ‘Nature is architecture created by God, and human architecture must learn from it,'” Woojin said simply.

Some people in the audience who studied architecture nodded, familiar with the quote.

Woojin continued, “I looked at the design of the Magok MICE complex from that perspective.”

The screen changed as Woojin spoke.

“I tried to bring the beautiful shape of nature, which the name Yangcheon suggests, into the design of the Magok Convention Center.”

The image on the screen was the same exterior design of the Magok Convention Center shown earlier.

“!”

“Oh…!”

Even though it was the same bird’s-eye view, the audience felt differently because the picture wasn’t a simple view from the top.

The camera angle was different, creating a new feeling, even though the same modeling and rendering were used.

Woojin paused to let the audience take in the image. He took a sip of water and spoke again.

“What do you think? Can you feel the mountains around Magok?”

Woojin pointed to the strong exterior on the southwest side and then to the calm northeast side.

“How about now? Can you feel the calm river and sunshine?”

The audience was silent, taking in the two images.

The two images showed very different beauty.

Yet, it was one building.

Woojin showed two different kinds of beauty by photographing the same building from different angles.

Seeing the audience’s reaction, Woojin smiled slightly and began the next part of his presentation.

“My design brings together two ideas: the strong, rough feeling of mountains and the calm, gentle feeling of rivers.”

Woojin pointed to the screen again.

Click-

This time, the screen showed a picture of the entire MICE complex, including the Magok Convention Center.

Woojin continued, “These two different feelings also fit well with what the MICE complex is for.”

The audience looked puzzled.

It wasn’t easy to see how the beauty of nature and the purpose of the MICE complex connected.

Woojin smiled, knowing their questions would turn into curiosity and focus.

Woojin finished the introduction and began the main part of the presentation.

Jacob groaned without realizing it.

“Ahem.”

He was getting drawn into Woojin’s presentation.

‘Is this really the design ALuna chose?’ he wondered.

From the start, with the story of Magok’s old name and the quote from Gaudi, it felt a bit old-fashioned.

The convention center’s design was beautiful, but using nature as inspiration is common in architecture.

Jacob thought this way at first, perhaps a bit defensively, as a designer looking at a competitor’s work.

But as Woojin showed pictures from different angles, Jacob’s mind began to change.

‘Is this really the same building?’

The building felt grand and powerful, yet also soft.

The sharp lines had become gentle curves.

The strong shape seemed to calmly settle on the other side.

Woojin called it mountains and rivers, talking about nature.

Jacob couldn’t disagree.

‘How could he put such different feelings on both sides of the building? Did he hide the connections on purpose with the camera angles?’

Jacob’s mind raced.

Even after seeing the pictures and hearing Woojin’s explanation, he couldn’t picture the whole building in his head.

Woojin’s design used shapes and angles that made it hard for anyone to imagine, even those with a good sense of space.

Even Woojin couldn’t redraw it without help from computer programs.

‘I can see it in the plans. How the shapes connect….’

Jacob focused on Woojin’s presentation.

Later, when he saw the convention center on top of the whole MICE complex…

“!”

Jacob’s mouth dropped open.

Lucas was impressed.

This was different from just looking at designs on paper.

His eyes were fixed on Woojin.

“The MICE complex has everything business people need.”

“In business, people need places to work hard and places to relax.”

The beauty of nature and the purpose of the MICE complex seemed unrelated at first.

‘He’s connecting nature and the MICE complex with his design…,’ Lucas thought.

This wasn’t clear in the designs he had seen before.

“The other buildings in the MICE complex already have designs that fit their roles,” Woojin said.

Lucas remembered the designs of the hotel and business buildings.

ALuna had chosen those designs, so Lucas understood Woojin’s point.

“I thought the buildings in the MICE complex, with their different designs, naturally connect to the nature around Magok.”

The mountains and the river.

The designs were similar to the nature around the MICE complex, as Woojin said.

“So, when designing the convention center, our WJ Studio wanted to tie the whole MICE complex together,” Woojin said.

Woojin connected the two ideas that seemed separate.

“It’s like nature, which is all about harmony.”

The connection made Woojin’s design feel alive and made the audience understand.

“The M-Tec Convention Center will fit with the whole MICE complex and blend into Magok,” Woojin said.

Lucas saw Woojin’s shining eyes.

They showed the passion of an architect.

The passion showed confidence.

“As if nature has always been there,” Woojin said.

Woojin looked around the audience and made eye contact with Lucas.

“The Magok Convention Center will be built ‘that way’ in that place,” Woojin finished.

The design of the convention center was the result of much effort over six months.

Woojin had made the audience understand the value of his design, and he could feel it in the air.

Woojin smiled, satisfied.

But it wasn’t over.

Lucas muttered, “Now all that’s left is… the final test.”

He looked even more excited.

Woojin’s presentation had brought the designs to life.

Now, Woojin would present the interior and exhibition designs for the first time.

If Woojin showed as much skill in the exhibition as Jacob, the contest would be decided.

Lucas clasped his hands and focused on Woojin’s voice.