丨韩国水原市丨IDR Architects

Architects:IDR Architects

Area:314m²

Year:2022

Photographs:Rohspace

Lead Architects:Borim Jun, Seunghwan Lee

Category:Houses

Design Team:Borim Jun, Seunghwan Lee

Engineering & Consulting > Structural:Yoon Structure

Engineering & Consulting > Mechanical:JUSUNG ENG

Engineering & Consulting > Electrical:DK Electrical Engineering & Consulting

City:Suwon-si

Country:South Korea

Blending into the Landscape – In the 1970s, as apartments became dominant in Korea, a quieter housing typology emerged: modest three-story brick homes built by small-scale contractors. With red bricks and white railings, these houses still shape the identity of many low-rise neighborhoods today. Wonderful Uman responds to this context by integrating into its surroundings rather than overwriting them. Its red-toned brick façade is slightly lighter than that of its neighbors, just enough to assert its presence while maintaining harmony with the streetscape.

Urban Infill, Tailored Flexibility – Located near Suwon World Cup Stadium, Wonderful Uman is a compact, four-story, mixed-use building on a 155-square-meter plot. The first two floors are flexible commercial units, while the upper floors house a single-family residence. This hybrid program reflects the organic urban setting, which, unlike rigidly zoned planned districts, permits a more responsive design.

Two separate entrances on the main façade allow the commercial floors to function independently or together. Foldable doors and layered glazing on the northeast side offer both a rhythmic street elevation and a porous storefront when opened. The residence can be accessed either internally via stairs from the second floor or through a private elevator entrance on the opposite side. This layout balances privacy with functionality, enabling various programmatic uses over time.

A Red House with Blue Water – The project's defining feature is a private indoor swimming pool on the top floor, which inspired its name, "Wonderful Uman" (a playful nod to the Korean word for pool). Measuring 2 by 10 meters, the pool sits under a steep gabled roof, with clerestory windows and high ceilings creating a bright, tranquil retreat above the city. The pool's concrete basin also functions as a structural beam along the building's main axis, reinforcing the structure. Lighting is layered - indirect illumination along the ceiling and underwater fixtures allow for various moods, particularly at night.

A key detail is the overflow gutter design. Instead of a conventional metal grate, the cover is made from the same tile as the pool floor. Water drains discreetly between narrow joints, marrying performance with aesthetic clarity. Wonderful Uman is a thoughtful urban infill - rooted in local context, programmatically flexible, and quietly unexpected.

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