Neighbouring buildings flank all 4 sides of this inner-city housing block in Seoul, so architecture studio Apparat-C planned the layout close to the very best positions for windows and balconies .
Named White Cone Property, the 5-storey block occupies a hemmed-in website inside the South Korean capital’s Mapo District, just west of the city centre. It accommodates 6 compact studio apartments, as well as a two-storey penthouse apartment.
Making certain ample daylight for the penthouse wasn’t a dilemma, but Apparat-C had to utilize a variety of methods to provide natural light and keep privacy for the studio flats, which occupy the building’s very first and second floors.
“In organizing the studio units, the important challenge was how to deliver adequate light into the units and but preserve privacy, which may possibly seem conflicting ideas,” explained Seewoong Lee, one of the studio’s three founders.
“The idea of getting enough ventilation and sunlight previously would seem a far-fetched thought in the densely populated multi-unit and multi-loved ones housing locations, not to mention privacy,” the architect said.
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Every single apartment was provided a recessed balcony that extends along the front of the primary living space. This permitted the windows to be pulled away from neighbouring structures.
Residents are also able to partially screen these balconies, employing sliding shutters produced from extruded mesh. “When hunting out from the residing area, the metal curtain screens off the a lot more boring see outside,” explained Lee.
Bathroom windows also encounter the balconies, rather than outwards towards other residences. “Usually in densely populated locations, the bathroom windows are dysfunctional simply because they can not be opened due to privacy,” added the architect.
A single staircase supplies the entrance route to all 7 residences. It sits at the building’s northern end – the darkest corner – as this spot was deemed least suitable for apartments.
It finishes at the entrance to the penthouse, which requires up the two uppermost floors. This residence contains residing, dining and kitchen spaces on the 2nd floor, and a bedroom and bathroom on the level over.
A decreased floor size on these two storeys creates a generous roof terrace, but also gives the developing an angular profile that prompted the title White Cone Property.
This is emphasised by the decision of white panels for the exterior – a type of cladding known as exterior insulation finishing technique (EIFS). Semi-transparent corrugated polycarbonate was utilised for the roof.
Parking spaces are slotted underneath the developing at ground-floor level, exactly where there is also a little workplace unit.
Seewoong Lee founded Apparat-C alongside partners Yeonyung Choi and Pedro Ferreira. Their very first finished task was a property with a zigzagging roof, and White Cone Home is their second.
Photography is by Namsun Lee.
Ground floor strategy 
1st floor strategy 
Second floor plan 
Third floor program 
Fourth floor strategy 
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