A Building Shell which Acts as a Signal: Myeonmok Fire Station in Seoul

The old fire hall in east Seoul was no longer up to date in terms of safety and labour requirements. Now, the new building accommodates all that is necessary: open offices and short traffic paths are the preconditions for quick mobilization of the firefighter team. A ground-floor garage accommodates three fire tucks, the offices are upstairs and offer a view of the six-lane street. The bedrooms on the upper floors face the backyard.

The small building stands in a new residential district and is surrounded by monotonous apartment high-rises. The new fire station plays a symbolic role in the neighbourhood. With its striking façade, the architects depict the structure’s public function.

Dynamic façade cladding of diagonal slats is interrupted by window openings at various heights. This makes the fire hall seem like a monolithic volume. The use of two types of slats with different depths – 100 mm and 200 mm – adds power to the façade dynamic. In the spirit of Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown, this fire station by Yong Ju Lee Architecture is a real “duck”: a symbiosis of form and function.