after eight years of design and construction, the new headquarters of amorepacific, korea’s largest beauty company, is complete. designed by david chipperfield architects, the 30-storey cube-shaped building broke ground in central seoul in 2014, and provides a place of work for 7,000 people. meanwhile, three roof gardens, on the 5th, 11th, and 17th floors, serve as external areas that offer views over the city and the mountains in the distance.

the project broke ground in 2014
image © noshe | main image © laurian ghinitoiu

the site, which has been occupied by amorepacific since 1956, is situated next to a former US military zone that is being transformed into a new public park and business district. david chipperfield architects describes the design of the building as both ‘abstract and gestural’. based on the concept of a white porcelain ‘moon jar’, which symbolizes korean beauty, the monolithic structure is developed around a central courtyard that maximizes natural ventilation and daylight. with their brise-soleil cladding, the façades not only provide shade and reduce heat load, but also allow the structure to be perceived as solid, open, and light.

the building shown in its urban context
image © noshe

the lower levels of the building are used as cultural spaces, with visitors greeted with a large atrium as they enter the lobby. public amenities — such as the museum, auditorium, library, restaurants and childcare facilities — surround the atrium, ensuring that the project is embedded within seoul’s growing metropolis. the fifth floor contains facilities for staff, with a large cafeteria joining a gym, lounge, and massage room. above, floors 6 to 21 contain a range of offices and workspaces.

courtyard
image © noshe

‘the building suggests generosity of spirit to the people who work here and the citizens,’ says david chipperfield. ‘it is more than an office, it is something that mediates between the company and the city. it shows how a company can participate in the larger community.’

the building’s tree-filled courtyard
image © noshe

roof garden
image © noshe

view from roof garden
image © david chipperfield architects

atrium, ground floor
image © noshe

courtyard, at night
image © david chipperfield architects

side street, view from north east
image © noshe

panoramic view of the building in context
image © david chipperfield architects

project info:

competition: 2010
project start: 2010
construction start: 2014
completion: 2017
gross floor area: 216,000 sqm / 2,325,005 sqf
client: amorepaciflc corporation, seoul
architect: david chipperfield architects berlin
partners: david chipperfield, christoph felger (design lead), harald müller

competition
project architect: hans krause
competition team: robert chandler, ivan dimitrov, kristen finke, paul hillerkus, nicolas kulemeyer, xuda liu, jens lorbeer, peter von matuschka, franziska rusch, lilli scherner, lukas schwind, julie studer

schematic design, design development
project architect: hans krause
project team: wolfgang baumeister, wolfram belz, ivan dimitrov, franziska friebel, christoph goeke, caroline hammarström, matthias heskamp, frithjof kahl, ruben kiewiet, nicolas kulemeyer, anke lawrence, ho sun lee, lena peters, thomas pyschny, susie ryu, noriyuki sawaya, julia schenke, marleen stauth, christian stöckert, natacha viveiros, robert westphal

construction documentation, construction administration
project architects: hans krause (overall project management), nicolas kulemeyer and thomas pyschny (project management)
project team: isabel albano-müller, wolfgang baumeister, wolfram belz, cyrell boehm, viktor braun, ronan burke, christian busch, rodrigo carrasquer, sophia deckel, caterina decker, paul eckert, rebecca egan, carlo fischer, alberto franco flores, franziska friebel, nico gaar, rafael heine, anne hengst, matthias heskamp, wilhelmina hoffmann, frank jödicke, kristin karig, anke lawrence, ho sun lee, pascal maas, franziska michalsky, lorand mittay, sandra morar, carthage murphy, felix müller-hartburg, eve neumann, miguel ortigão, nicolas pabion, diogo passarinho, alexandre pavlidis, mariana peralta, lena peters, rosa piepoli, ilona priwitzer, maximilian pudenz, thorsten rothmann, susie ryu, josh saunders, noriyuki sawaya, diana schaffrannek, gunda schulz, marlitt schwarzer, lijun shen, vincent sijssens, caroline stahl, iason tsironis, jene van den abeele, gordan vitevski, marc warrington, max werner, robert westphal, malte wilms, kyung ho won

in collaboration with
executive architect: HAEAHN architecture, seoul (shell & core, schematic design – construction documents); KESSON, seoul (interiors)
site supervision: kunwon engineering co. ltd., seoul
general contractor: hyundai engineering & construction, seoul
design engineers: arup deutschland gmbh, berlin & arup ltd., london (schematic design – design development)
signage: L2M3 communication design, stuttgart
landscape architect: SeoAhn, seoul