The House of
Sulwhasoo Bukchon

With its beautiful and harmonious mix of tradition and modern aesthetics, Bukchon shares something fundamentally common with Sulwhasoo’s philosophy, which has inspired the brand to continue its cultural mecenat initiative, “Beauty From Culture.” As you make your way slowly up the main road through Gahoe-dong, and between the royal palaces of Gyeongbukgung and Changdeokgung, you will soon find a Hanok residence that blends in naturally with its surroundings.

Sulwhasoo embarked on its journey towards true beauty by melding a Hanok (traditional Korean architecture) residence built during the 1930s with a Yangok (Western architecture) residence built during the 1960s. Sulwhasoo removed the embankment dividing the two properties, and created an open courtyard to connect the Hanok and Yangok houses. Then, like a woman with a discerning eye for value in traditional aesthetics would, Sulwhasoo filled out every part of the residence in a way that would allow customers to experience the contemporary beauty Sulwhasoo had found from grafting the two architectural styles.

Choi Wook, Head Architect of ONE O ONE Architects, which took the lead in the architectural elements of the House of Sulwhasoo project, determined that the open space between the roof and the floor is key to a Hanok building, and thus designed the Hanok section of the residence in a way that made it completely visible from the outside. To preserve the more traditional elements of the two buildings, Choi kept the original pillars and rafters from the Hanok and the structural framework of the Yangok as much as possible. To round out the overall design for the House of Sulwhasoo, Choi also kept the marble slab near the doorway and wall tiles, which would have been novelties when the two houses were originally built.