daewha kang design's rainbow publishing HQ celebrates history in paju book city, korea
London-based Daewha Kang Design has completed a mixed-use building in Paju Book City, South Korea, for the Rainbow Publishing headquarters. The building, characterized by its simple volumes and austere lines, incorporates a gallery on the ground floor, office spaces on the middle levels, and a residence on the top floor. The design intentionally creates a bold visual statement through its pure lines and rich texture, contrasting with the varied architectural styles in the surrounding area.
The central feature of the building is a hundred-year staircase, which is a glazed structure wrapping around a colossal bookcase. This bookcase is designed with one shelf for each year of the last century, spanning from 1918 to 2017. As the publishing house releases biographies of ordinary Koreans who lived through the 20th century, these books are placed on the shelves corresponding to their subjects' birth years. This transforms the ascent through the building into a journey through the country's history and its people, embodying the publishers' vision of individual lives forming a collective 'beautiful rainbow.'
The staircase's design was generated using a genetic algorithm, which ensures an organic yet ordered growth from the base to the top, balancing the need for book storage with aesthetic appeal. The exterior façade mirrors this concept of 'sedimentary growth' through volcanic stone bricks cut at three different depths, creating textured layers that echo the interior's historical narrative. The chosen materials—hyeon-mu-am volcanic stone, clear glass, and steel—were selected for their durability and variegated textures, contributing to the building's timeless quality.
Beyond its symbolic representation of history, the staircase also promotes a healthy lifestyle for the family residing on the top floor. Academic research suggests that regular stair climbing can contribute to a longer life, making the staircase a functional and attractive element that encourages its use over the lift. An interactive application at the top of the stairs allows the four family members to record their progress, fostering a playful competition and accumulating a unique dataset of their daily activity, which will form another layer of living history within the building over time.
The building's placement and orientation were determined by a thorough analysis of the local climate. The longer façade faces southeast to capture optimal views and abundant, yet less harsh, natural light. The hundred-year stair is oriented southwest, offering views of the wetlands and the broader Paju Book City through an opening in the urban fabric. This orientation also allows the long façade to absorb winter sun, radiating warmth into the garden, while effectively blocking northerly winter winds. Small windows on the north façade minimize heat loss while maintaining cross-ventilation, demonstrating a thoughtful integration of sustainable design principles within its monumental yet contextual presence in Paju Book City.
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