Independent is an adaptive reuse project that transforms an aging lodging facility that had outlived its original purpose. The former program, along with architectural elements and finishes that prescribed a particular image, was removed, leaving the building’s basic structure exposed. Marks produced during demolition, including scars on the rough wall surfaces and traces of red spray paint, were left uncovered rather than concealed beneath new finishes.

In a rapidly changing architectural climate, assigning a new use that responds only to present demands may simply create another expiration date. Rather than fixing the building to a complete and predetermined program, the project treats architecture as a framework that can accommodate different forms of use and allow time to accumulate.

The building stands facing the sea in Aewol, Jeju. Over the years it has stood there, the memories of those who looked out at the sea from the same place, through the same frame, may also have accumulated within it. The original windows and views therefore serve as a framework that brings together memories formed at different moments in time.

The meaning of the space is not defined in advance. Some may contemplate the sea, some may pause before a painting, and others may remain in conversation. As different activities take place within each of the divided rooms, the theme of the space gradually emerges, becoming complete when the lights of all the rooms come together as a single scene.

Rather than applying a new image to the existing building, Independent proposes a form of regeneration that removes elements likely to become obsolete and leaves behind a structure in which past memories, present use, and time can continue to accumulate.