Yuhan's Willow House wins Korea space culture grand prize

The culture ministry said Thursday that Yuhan's Willow House, a remodelled former company headquarters in Seoul, has won the grand prize at the 2026 Korea Space Culture Award. The ministry selected the building from 52 entries submitted by local governments, public institutions and private companies, and a jury narrowed the field to six winners after document and on-site reviews.

The grand prize, which carries the presidential award, went to a building that the jury said sets a new standard for public space created by a private company. The jury praised the "overwhelming sense of scale, the history held in the red bricks, and the sincerity of a public space aimed at citizens." It said the project showed that when privately held architectural heritage is opened to the public, remodelling can carry a community into a new period rather than simply preserving the past.

Yuhan, which marked its 100th anniversary this year, chose to renovate rather than demolish its old office building, completed in 1963 in Daebang-dong, Dongjak-gu. The company restored the red brick facade and turned the old building footprint and parking lot into gardens handed over to the neighbourhood. Willow House operates as a space open around the clock, where corporate memory and local daily life meet. The building at 74 Noryangjin-ro has a total floor area of 12,256.57 square metres and houses cultural and assembly facilities, neighbourhood living facilities and offices. Yuhan owns and operates it; Ciaplan Architecture designed it.

The runner-up, which takes the prime minister's award, is Seoul's Eoullim Plaza in Gangseo-gu. The 23,915.18-square-metre building began as a welfare facility for people with disabilities and was converted into a courtyard for culture, welfare, education and sports used by residents. The jury said the architect's commitment and the public sector's persistence in turning a facility for disabled people into a yard everyone can enjoy stood out, and expressed hope that similar attempts would spread nationwide.

Four other projects received ministerial awards. A restaurant at the Indongchon senior welfare centre in Daegu's Seo-gu district took the Dure Nanum award. A local food store in Namhae, South Gyeongsang Province, won the Street Yard award; a rest area in Jinju, also in South Gyeongsang Province, won the Nuri Shelter award; and a building in Buan, North Jeolla Province, won the Uri Sarang award for making good use of local historical and cultural resources.

Now in its 21st year, the Korea Space Culture Award has been given since 2006 to raise public interest in well-designed living spaces and improve the quality of cultural life. The award ceremony will be held on Oct. 27, the opening day of the 2026 Korea Architecture Culture Festival. Photographs and video of the winning works will be displayed at Bexco in Busan from Oct. 27 to 31.