A South Korean Couple Build a Place to Retire on Land They Farmed for More Than a Decade

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Project Details:

Location: Gyeonggi-do, South Korea

Footprint: 1,377 square feet

Designer: Sukchulmok

Builder: Direct Construction

Structural Engineer: Eden Structural

Photographer: Seokgyu Hong / @seokgyuhong

From the Designer: “Situated with a view of the vegetable garden, this house is composed of intersecting volumes made from different materials. These overlapping forms define the outer shell, ensuring privacy while creating a sense of depth and warmth within. Its appearance, embracing the field like a protective gesture, inspired the name Pojeon-jip (抱田), meaning ‘a house that embraces the field.’ The site was originally a stretch of farmland at the foot of a mountain. It was cultivated by the retired husband and his wife, who spent over a decade tending to the land with their hands. This cherished garden had become both a place of rest and a playful retreat. Wishing for their postretirement life to center around this land, they requested a home to be built on part of it.

“When we first visited, the site felt like an open, exposed clearing, making privacy one of the main design challenges. To address this, we proposed overlapping the architectural mass with the site boundaries, allowing the fence and exterior walls to connect organically. This strategy created spatial density, and despite the limited footprint, vertical gestures and the extension of the outer shell enhanced the sense of scale and visual openness.

“With its embracing gesture, the building presents a solid, fortresslike exterior, while framing views of the forested hillside like a concrete picture frame on the inside. Through a program that intertwines farming with daily life, residents can live in close connection with nature. Pojeon-jip is a home where farming and living coexist. It serves as a peaceful retreat for the couple and a vessel for their memories. It also creates an organic space for multigenerational living—where life flows alongside the scent of earth.”