From Mies to Mass Studies (the OMA Line)
미스에서 매스스터디스로 (OMA 라인)
Mies van der Rohe's Berlin and Chicago work shaped the discourse that Rem Koolhaas inherited and inverted at OMA. Cho Min-suk worked at OMA Rotterdam from 1996 to 2003 before founding Mass Studies in Seoul, where he applies OMA-style program experimentation to Korea's hyper-dense urbanism. OMA itself also built directly in Korea — see Leeum Museum 3 (2004).
The chain
German-American modernist who directed the Bauhaus and later headed architecture at IIT in Chicago. His aphorism 'less is more' and steel-and-glass aesthetic defined corporate modernism. His writings and Berlin work deeply influenced Rem Koolhaas, who in turn mentored Korea's Cho Min-suk.
Dutch architect and theorist, founder of OMA. 'Delirious New York' and 'S,M,L,XL' redefined architectural discourse. In Korea, OMA designed Galleria Foret and Leeum Museum 3. Cho Min-suk (Mass Studies) trained at OMA from 1996.
Founder of Mass Studies (2003). Trained at OMA Rotterdam under Rem Koolhaas (1996-2003) before returning to Korea. His work bridges Koolhaas-style program experimentation with Korean urban density. Notable works: Boutique Monaco, Songwon Art Center, Korean Pavilion at the 2014 Venice Biennale (Golden Lion).
Visit on this lineage
Boutique Monaco
(부띠끄 모나코)by Cho Min-suk (조민석)· 2008· 서울 서초구A 27-story residential tower with 49 'missing pixels' — voids carved out as sky gardens for the apartments. Cho Min-suk's translation of OMA-style program experimentation into Seoul's hyper-dense Gangnam, 2008.
Notableexterior onlySongwon Art Center
(송원아트센터)by Cho Min-suk (조민석)· 2012· 서울 종로구A folded-corten gallery wedged into a tight Bukchon hanok-village lot. The dark rusted volumes lean inward to negotiate with neighboring traditional roof lines while creating a procession of small interior galleries.
Notableopen to publicPixel House (Heyri)
(픽셀 하우스 (헤이리))by Cho Min-suk (조민석)· 2003· 경기 파주시An early Mass Studies experiment: a small house in the Heyri art village built up from cubic 'pixels' instead of plastered surfaces. The pixel grain produced a textured envelope unlike anything else in Heyri's eclectic mix.
Of interestexterior onlyAnn Demeulemeester Shop
(앤 드뮐미스터 매장)by Cho Min-suk (조민석)· 2007· 서울 강남구A retail building in Sinsa-dong covered in living grass — the entire building is planted, blurring the line between architecture and landscape. Often cited as a precursor to the green-architecture movement in Seoul.
Of interestexterior onlyLeeum Museum 3 / Children's Education & Culture Center
(리움 미술관 M3 (어린이교육문화센터))by Rem Koolhaas· 2004· 서울 용산구Rem Koolhaas / OMA's Leeum building, rotated and lifted to negotiate the sloped Hannam-dong site. Houses an education center and special exhibition spaces. Completes the trio of Leeum buildings by international stars (with Botta and Nouvel).
Notableopen to publicDaum Space.1
(다음 스페이스.1 (제주))by Cho Min-suk (조민석)· 2012· 제주 제주시Mass Studies' headquarters building for Korean tech company Daum (now Kakao) in Jeju's Aewol tech park. A 'green canopy' building — undulating green roofs that step over the office floors, designed to integrate with Jeju's volcanic landscape rather than impose a glass tower on it.
Notableexterior onlySeoul National University Museum of Art
(서울대학교 미술관)by Rem Koolhaas· 2005· 서울 관악구Rem Koolhaas / OMA's first Korean building, sitting at the entrance gate of Seoul National University's hillside campus. The museum is a single tilted volume cantilevered on slender pilotis — a provocative geometric gesture that lifts above the topography rather than settling into it. Open to the public.
Notableopen to publicGalleria Foret
(갤러리아 포레)by Rem Koolhaas· 2009· 서울 성동구OMA's second Korean work, a pair of 45-story residential towers next to Seoul Forest park. The slim towers are wrapped in screen-printed glass with a forest pattern, blurring building and landscape. A precursor to Cho Min-suk's Boutique Monaco in similar Korean luxury-residential program experimentation.
Notableexterior only