Why it matters to you
Moon Hoon’s quirky, playful designs have most recently manifested themselves in an incredible owl-inspired home in South Korea.
Owls may not be a common sight in metropolitan areas, but to make up for the bird’s absence, one architect is building houses inspired by the animal. Proving that nature really is our best inspiration, South Korean architect Moon Hoon designed a four story building in the city of Busan that attempts to meld the forest with the concrete jungle. The upper stories of the house closely resemble an owl’s head, and its large windows look very much like eyes that light up at night. So sure, Busan residents may not be able to hear an owl’s hoot, but they can see the bird’s architectural equivalent in the middle of their neighborhood.
The buyer who commissioned Hoon to build the unique residence hoped for a home “to reflect a sense of protectiveness and defensiveness,” Dornob reports. Hoon was simultaneously tasked with creating an indoor space that would be fun for a young child. Ultimately, the architect engineered a design that “manifests [its] hidden identity” as a superhero in the form of an owl, with a turned head that overlooks some of the city’s most spectacular views. A number of private outdoor spaces can be found behind the owl’s “wings,” whereas a glass entryway separates the bird’s two “feet.”
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The home is inundated with windows, but with strategically placed setbacks and cuts, the house features plenty of shady areas both inside and out. While the lowest level is designed as a commercial space (ostensibly for the home buyer’s business), the upper levels of the home are meant for common space and bedrooms. The head of the owl, for example, houses the child’s bedroom and playroom, as well as the master bedroom and dressing room.
There’s a library on the floor directly underneath, whereas an open-plan kitchen, dining room, and living room are on the lower floor. With a finished product like this, it’s no wonder that Moon Hoon has been called “the king of playful architecture.” For more of the architect’s incredible work, you can check out his website here.