Seoul, South Korea
Designed by Yong Ju Lee and his team, Root Bench is a circle-shaped public furniture with a diameter of 30m, installed in the grass, which shows the dynamic shape of roots spreading throughout the park.
It provides visual stimulus creating a strong contrast to the background of the spacious outdoor park.
And people can take a rest with it while sitting and leaning on its different height.
The main concept continued from the winning proposal is that the organic shape sprawling out from the center creates spatial connectivity.
The art piece designed by a computer algorithm presents dynamicity from three-dimensional geometry.
The metal frame with concrete footing supports the overall form as the main structure and wooden deck covers it.
By applying familiar material for finishing, it is easy to use and maintain as a comfort seat.
As well as suggesting the complete shape of the circle, Root Bench is fused into the grass and blurs the boundary between artificial installation and natural environment.
While communicating with each other, visitors can feel comfortable in a resting space and enjoy the art piece at the same time.
It also functions perfectly as furniture with three different heights: child chair (250mm), adult chair (450mm) and table (75mm). The rhythmical shape can suggest fresh stimulation to Hangang Park and provide various aspects of pleasure.
To articulate the spreading-out branch intensively, a reaction-diffusion system is applied to design process.
This mathematical model describes the change in space and time of the concentration of one or more chemical substances: local chemical reactions in which the substances are transformed into each other, and diffusion which causes the substances to spread out over a surface in space.
Through the algorithm from it, an overall radial form is generated with the foreground (installation) merging into its background (grass).
Yong Ju Lee Root Bench
Architects: Yong Ju Lee Architecture
Design team: Seung Joon Lee, HyeokJun Dong, Seongmin Moon
Client: Hangang Art Park
Fabrication: Sunjin Plus
Photographers: Kyungsub Shin, Dae Won Lee, Kyung Mo Choi and Yong Ju Lee Architecture
