ARCHITECTURE COMES TO THE KOREAN DMZ

Though the Heyri Art Valley’s location is near one of the world’s most distinctive and disruptive dividing lines, it’s also an ambitious and forward-thinking experiment. An hour north of Seoul and just shy of the Demilitarized Zone, the community encourages art-related activities in a not-too-distant war-torn area. Nestled among six hills, the museums, studios, residences and concert halls beckon those who appreciate constant, 24-hour-a-day creativity despite the surreal surroundings. And now they have an amazing Book House, designed by the renowned New York architectural firm SHoP, started by Gregg Pasquarelli, Christopher Sharples, William Sharples, Coren Sharples and Kimberly Holden.

Two and half years in the making, Hangil Book House—Hangil is the largest Korean publisher of art and philosophy books—represents a penetrating insight into the era of the book in the age of digital design. The house is divided into two zones—like the DMZ itself—with a vertical bar separating a three story book wall with ramps connection to outdoor reading and performance spaces. A scrim of dark-stained wood folds over the exhibition hall and serves as the roof, bringing to mind an elegant book cover. People can read on the benches placed on the undulating roof or just sit and perhaps contemplate a more unfied future. Somehow, SHoP has created a modernized version of Walden Pond, thousands of miles (and hundreds of years) from Thoreau’s idyll. www.shoparc.com —JS

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