When you step into The Hyundai Seoul, it’s not immediately obvious whether you’re in a spa or a shopping centre. With zen design elements, a waterfall garden, luxuriant greenery and sprawling spaces, the department store—‘s largest—puts a whole new spin on the term ‘retail therapy’. The multi-level scheme is courtesy of Toronto-based interior design firm, , who created the store as part of a larger complex featuring offices, shops and leisure spaces, just in case shoppers decide they’d rather never leave.
The store is composed of twelve levels, with a lush atrium that looks like it could have tumbled out of Neverland—if Neverland came in black-and-white. The atrium is visible from all the levels of the store, and with its luminous skylight, floating islands and sculptural gravity-defying waterfall, it truly is a sight for sore eyes (and feet and arms).
There’s nature everywhere you look. From the reflective ceiling borders that mimic tranquil water patterns to the piazza-inspired green belt that skirts the spaces (it masquerades as a runway for social interactions, art displays and pop-up stages), there’s no dearth of natural recharge options around here.
“Hyundai’s vision was to allocate 50 percent of the floor plate to public spaces where people could socialise in a much more experiential environment than the typical mall experience has to offer,” says Diego Burdi, co-founder and creative director of Burdifilek. “In the end, our aesthetic was informed by Seoul’s surrounding landscape.”
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Inspired by the feminine silhouettes that call it their home, the second floor (reserved for women’s high-end fashion) is a gallery-like realm characterised by soft textures, hushed hues and ambient lighting. There’s an ethereal quality to the ceiling, which, thanks to its hanging decorative fixtures, puts on a magical display of light and shadow. Despite the swish setting, the brands on display manage to shine through, magicking away their surroundings when it comes time to shop.
Diego and his co-founder, Paul Filek (who also serves as the managing partner), turned the third floor into a mini Eden, or a modern abstraction of it. Reimagined as a garden in bloom, there’s a gorgeous rawness to the space—electric blue hanging systems hover here and there, natural and man-made materials sit side-by-side, the ceiling is exposed, vacuum-formed sculptural walls whisper of the soil, and the palette is spare, almost naked.
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The fifth floor, christened the Sounds Forest, takes it up a notch with true-to-life grass and trees that mimic a real-life garden. “This project is a celebration of many ingredients, from retail and technology innovation to exceptional design and architecture,” says Paul, to which Diego adds of the twelve-floor construction, “Our philosophy was to create a different design language on each floor, while variously evoking nature.”
One thing is for sure—whether you’re headed there for retail or restoration, it’s abundantly clear that The Hyundai Seoul has something for everyone.
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