The Foundations and Variations in a House
House
Kim Jeoungeun (Kim): Beginning with your Dumulmuri House (1998), you have designed a total of 25 houses thus far. These houses all have their differences in terms of their locations, scales, family members, and specific remits, but I assume that they also have a connecting theme. What do you focus on when designing a house?
Jeong Jaeheon (Jeong): I first reflect on the more fundamental things rather than the visual and physical things. It is not about designing a house, but about narrating a life. As such, the most important thing is to understand the users. From the moment I receive a design request, I observe the client carefully until the final phase of construction. I ask myself why the client wants a new house, what kind of life the client will lead, what the client likes and dislikes, and even the future of the house when the client leaves. With this longterm perspective regarding a client’s life, I think about how to reflect such desires in the design.
Kim: The amount of time people spend in their homes has increased due to Coronavirus Disease-19 (COVID-19). With its rise in importance, one cannot but ponder about what really makes a house. What are your present thoughts regarding houses in recognition of our ongoing situation?
Jeong: I would like to take a step back to the pre-COVID-19 days. Are we so different from the people who lived 2,000 years ago? We still plant ourselves on the ground, listen to flowing water, watch the trees blossom, spend
