A house that rests like a cloud
Along the lakefront of Jeonju’s new urban district, a house sits quietly like a cloud drifting over water. Its gently soaring curved roof lifts toward the sky, while the pure white façade softly glows with the light reflected off the lake. This is a house where the spirit of tradition meets the sensibility of the contemporary, and where the emotional landscapes of city and nature converge.
The clients, a young couple with a deep affection for traditional Korean culture, envisioned a retreat where they could momentarily step away from their busy lives. The site, slightly removed from the city’s fast-paced rhythm, lies on the edge where the urban fabric meets the natural calm of the lake. A threshold between the everyday and the extraordinary. A secluded refuge that remains subtly connected to the world while offering a sense of peace.
The most striking gesture of the house is the sweeping curved roof, visible from afar. Inspired by the dynamic upward gestures found in traditional Korean architecture—referred to as the sense of soaring—the roofline lifts like a bird poised for flight, creating a silhouette that floats lightly above the landscape. Below it rests a simple white mass, set firmly upon a raised base. Though modest in form, the house quietly balances a traditional spirit with a modern structural clarity.
At its heart lies an open numaru-like space known as the “Gate of Life.” Positioned at the threshold between interior and exterior, it frames views where the city and nature meet. The architect describes this space as an “architectural viewfinder”—a device that draws in the outside world and invites it into the private realm. It is both a screen filtering external views and a permeable wall defining the boundary between inside and out. Here, enclosure and openness, shelter and exposure, frame and panorama coexist.
Beyond this gate lies a courtyard embraced on three sides. Though carefully constructed, the garden evokes a natural rhythm, offering a calm void that screens the house from its surroundings while opening it to the sky and plants. It becomes the most vital breathing space of the home—a quiet place for meditation, conversation, and daily pause.
Above this courtyard, another curved roof appears to float. Enclosing the family room, it evokes the image of a room suspended in the clouds, giving architectural form to the symbolic meaning behind the house’s name, “HO-UN”—cloud over the lake.
Through a contemporary reinterpretation of Korea’s traditional architectural language, this house becomes a gentle shelter from life’s turbulence—a place of rest that resonates with the emotions of modern urban dwellers, grounded in history yet open to the present.
Project: HO-UN / Location: Jang-dong, Deokjin-gu, Jeonju-si, Jeollabuk-do, Republic of Korea / Architect: IROJE KHM Architects (HyoMan Kim) / Project team: NaeJung Park, GaYoung Kim, HeeJu Lee / Structural engineer: Eun Structre Co.Ltd. / Mechanical and electrical engineer: Yousungeng / Landscape architect: Openness Studio / Contractor: ENDO construction / Use: private house / Site area: 377.60m² / Bldg. area: 148.37m² / Gross floor area: 383.13m² / Bldg. scale: three stories above ground / Structure: RC / Exterior finishing: exposed concrete / Interior finishing: epoxy paint, vinyl paint / Completion: 2025 / Photograph: ©Sergio Pirrone (courtesy of the architect)
