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A public library designed by UNSANGDONG Architects in South Korea offers a fresh case study in bringing natural light into deep spaces, and wood construction more broadly. Odong Public Library is tucked away in the woods of Seoul’s Odong Park forest.
The 2,800-square-foot building rises a single story. Its squarish plan necessitated an innovative approach to connecting its deepest spaces with the sun. The roof is broken up into tiers that gradually rise up. This ensemble creates clerestories that wash the library’s center with natural light.
This is an ancient construction approach dating back centuries, albeit with a contemporary twist. But where Odong Public Library’s true innovation occurs is in its material assembly.
Wooden columns are interspersed throughout Odong Public Library’s interior, emulating the sporadic tree scape just outside. All in all, UNSANGDONG Architects opted for an open floor plan that functions more like a single unified space than a series of disparate rooms.
Fixed bookshelves are inserted in between the columns, under the intriguing roof. These shelves are made of the same wood material as the interior structural finishes, architects noted. There, 2 x 6’s that help hold the building up become indistinguishable from the things that contain the books themselves.
The open floor plan makes walking through the library like traversing a forest, creating an ambiguity of physical relationships. Furniture was located to Odong Public Library’s internal perimeter.
This makes for great spaces for readers to cozy up, read a book, and engage with the natural surroundings comprised of large rocks and lush vegetation. The space and structure provide a release valve from the bustling metropolis. A canopy serves as a threshold between indoor and outdoor, wrapped by a loggia.