In 2016, shinslab architecture was the laureate of the YAP (Young Architect Program) in partnership with New York's MoMA. They presented a temporary installation at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art Korea (MMCA) in Seoul. (https://archello.com/project/templ)
After several months on exhibition, this piece was disassembled and reinstalled on another site 40km east of Seoul in the mountains.
This deconstructed ship's hull is now inhabited as a café.
As when it was installed in the museum, the hull was divided into several transportable parts and reassembled on the definitive site. To ensure the permanence of the structure, the welding of the parts was carried out with care by skilled shipyard workers.
The hull was also cleaned and rustproofed on the outside to ensure a perfect impermeability.
Thick polyurethane foam thermal insulation was sprayed onto the interior surfaces. This insulation proved highly resistant to the variations in temperature that can be observed in Korea, especially in this region, where temperatures can reach -20°C every winter.
The interior surfaces of the hull were finished with thin metal sheets of varying sizes to adapt finely to the curved shapes of the geometry.
The ceiling height of around 7.6m allowed the installation of an intermediate mezzanine and a small suspended rest cabin.
Ceramic pieces by the famous Chinese artist Zhu Legeng (https://www.artnet.com/artists/zhu-legeng/), recuperated from an old building project, were used to finish certain walls, the balustrade of the mezzanine and the staircase.
The industrial scrap resulting from the dismantling of a ship, which has a lifetime of around 30 years, is now a habitable, solid and durable architecture for many years to come.
