portuguese architects álvaro siza and carlos castanheira, worked together with korean architect jun sung kim to propose daegu’s new kansong art museum in south korea. the scheme is envisioned to introduce a place that is‘precious,’which in turn will display the most precious of korean art. the team undertakes the work along with its drawings with extreme care and attentiveness, studying routes and establishing a hierarchy of spaces, volume, and materials. with the kansong art museum, the group seeks space and light, designing form and shadow.

3D models and visualizations by germano vieira, sara noronha
the design team — led by álvaro siza with carlos castanheira and jun sung kim — sites its proposed kansong art museum within a beautiful park in daegu to be passed through upon approach. permanent,‘precious’artwork will be displayed within a below-ground gallery softly lit by a central patio. the space will maintain an atmosphere that is both secure and exposed — while underground, all visitors will be aware of it to enjoy. above, fluid and temporary exhibitions spaces display contemporary works softly lit from above by generous and controlled skylights.

carlos castanheira comments on the design process of daegu’s kansong art museum:‘the new kansong museum aims to take care of the precious, displaying it to the public, as this is the only way preciousness will be achieved.’the public and educational areas are concentrated around the wide open and freely accessible spaces while the museum archives are securely stored within a separate building, only accessible to specialist staff. the building’s volume is clad in light naturally cleaved stone which fragments and spreads itself along the hillside of the park. these volumes open and close, announcing functions and connecting interior spaces with the outside to let in light and landscape.








project info:
project title: kansong art museum
architecture: álvaro siza, carlos castanheira, jun sung kim
location: daegu, south korea
design year: 2020
status: in progress
office in portugal: CC&CB – architects, lda.
project architect: pedro carvalho
project team: lara giorla, nuno campos, diana vasconcelos, sara cabral, filipe mota
3D models and renderings: germano vieira, sara noronha
local office: hANd + architects
architect in charge: jue chae, jisung kim











