Seoul Residential Towers, Yongsan building, The Cloud Project Korea design, 9/11 attack controversy

Yongsan Residential Towers, Seoul: The Cloud

Dreamhub Business District, Korea design by MVRDV architects

MVRDV Apologise Twin Towers Design

Dutch architects MVRDV have apologised for its design of twin skyscrapers in central Seoul which resemble the exploding World Trade Center towers in New York.

The Cloud at Yongsan Dreamhub, Seoul, South Korea:

image © MVRDV

14 + 12 Dec 2011

Yongsan Towers Controversy

The designs have infuriated families of the victims of the 9/11 attacks.

The design for the luxury apartment buildings in Yongsan was released last week and shows a structure which juts out at the middle to accommodate pools, restaurants, cafes and a gym.

Relatives of victims of al Qaeda’s September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States have expressed outrage, according to US media reports, saying the designers have no respect for those that died and branding the design a cheap publicity stunt.

Yongsan Towers : BBC report – external link

Designer MVRDV said it had not intended to create an image resembling the attacks, and it did not see the resemblance during the design process.

“We sincerely apologise to anyone whose feelings we have hurt. It was not our intention,” the company said on its website.

MVRDV did not indicate whether it would change the design.

8 Dec 2011

Yongsan Towers

Design: MVRDV

MVRDV designs The Cloud : two connected luxury residential towers in Seoul, Korea

image © MVRDV

Yongsan Dream Hub corporation presented today the MVRDV designed residential development of the Yongsan Business district: two connected luxury residential high-rises. A 260 meter tall tower and a 300 meter tall tower are connected in the centre by a pixelated cloud of additional program offering amenities and outside spaces with wide views. The towers with a total surface of 128,000m2 are expected to be completed in 2015.

The Cloud at Yongsan Dreamhub, Seoul, South Korea:

images © MVRDV

The two towers are positioned at the entrance of the Yongsan Dreamhub project, a master plan designed by Studio Libeskind, extending the business district of the South Korean capital Seoul. The southern tower reaches a height of 260 meters with 54 floors, the northern tower 300 meters with 60 floors. Halfway, at the level of the 27th floor the cloud is positioned, a 10 floor tall pixelated volume, connecting the two towers. The cloud differentiates the project from other luxury developments, it moves the plinth upwards and makes space on ground floor level for public gardens, designed by Martha Schwartz.

The Cloud is located at the entrance to the Dreamhub masterplan:

image © MVRDV

Usually a high-rise adds little to the immediate surrounding city life, by integrating public program to the cloud the typology adds in a more social way to the city. Inside the cloud, besides the residential function, 14,357m2 of amenities are located: the sky lounge – a large connecting atrium, a wellness centre, conference centre, fitness studio, various pools, restaurants and cafes. On top of the cloud are a series of public and private outside spaces, patios, decks, gardens and pools. To allow fast access the cloud is accessible by special express elevators.

The interior of the Sky lounge:

image © MVRDV

The luxurious apartments range from 80m2 to 260m2 of which some offer double height ceilings , patios or gardens. The towers with a perfect square floor plan contain four corner apartments per floor offering each fine daylight conditions and cross ventilation. Each tower is accessed via a grand lobby at ground level; the rest of the ground floor is divided into town houses. In addition to the amenities the Cloud furthermore contains 9,000m2 of Officetel (Office-Hotel) a typical Korean typology and 25,000m2 panoramic apartments with specific lay-outs. The top floors of both towers are reserved for penthouse apartments of 1200m2 with private roof gardens.

images © MVRDV