SO? rests wood & metal canopy atop rocks for ‘urban interior’ pavilion in south korea

SUPRA pavilion embraces the experience of rain, sunlight, and sound, making water’s journey visible from sky to soil.

ravail khan January 4, 2025 4 min

supra pavilion embraces the elements in daegu, south korea

As urban landscapes continue to sprawl and the Anthropocene alters how we inhabit the planet, architecture grapples with redefining public realms. Studio SO?’s SUPRA is a permanent installation in Daegu, South Korea, that tackles this challenge for the Suseong International Biennale, engaging with natural elements and public space with a poetic simplicity. Almost primitive in form and evocative of Korean architectural traditions, the pavilion rests a wood and metal canopy atop two boulders, creating an ‘urban interior’ where visitors can find a moment of shelter and rest.

The name SUPRA is suggestive of its opposite, ‘infra’, referring to that which is ‘above’ instead of below. It embraces the experience of rain, sunlight, and sound unlike typical urban infrastructures that are concealed underground. On rainy days, it makes water’s journey visible from sky to earth, showing its flow along the roof and grooves. On dry days, the canopy creates a quiet retreat, embodying Marshall Berman’s concept of being ‘privately public,’ where individuals can be together without feeling crowded.

so?’s sensorial space evokes traditional korean architecture

While the work was created for the Suseong International Biennale, which concluded in October 2024, it will remain at its idyllic yet central location in Suseong-gu — addressing the biennale’s overarching goal to rethink how architecture in urban settings can foster reflection and reconnection in a tangible, lasting way.‘We’ve observed the human-nature relationship, noting that, unlike in Istanbul, natural resources like mountains, rivers, and winds are still tangible in Korean cities, despite technology taking precedence,’ notes the team at SO?. This informs the Turkish studio’s approach with SUPRA, which, instead of imposing, invites, in response to the biennale’s theme of Relational Field.

The pavilion’s placement is deliberate, positioned between dense urban developments and highways and a tranquil lake dotted with lotus flowers. This duality is reflected in the structure, embodying the interaction between the natural and the built and to create a sensorial space that heightens awareness of the environment amid the hurry of urban life.