Dongdaemun Design Park by Zaha Hadid Architects is inaugurated in Seoul

Dongdaemun, a busy and historic neighbourhood in central Seoul's Jongno-gu district, is known for its shopping offerings, but from today, it will also be the home of one of South Korea's most innovative new spaces, the Dongdaemun Design Park (DDP) by architect Zaha Hadid. 

Set to be inaugurated today, the Dongdaemun Design Park is designed to be one of the city's key cultural hubs - a place as much for art and design, as for new technologies and media - and will host a wide selection of exhibition and events. Created in the architecture team's signature curvaceous forms, the complex includes a park – a much-needed 30,000 sq m green oasis within the densely built South Korean capital – and plaza, linked together in a way that encourages interaction between the two.

Careful planning ensured that 'architecture and urban landscape, solid and void, interior and exterior', blend effortlessly, explain the architects. Covering a staggering 86,574 sq m, DDP also includes a design museum, library and educational facilities. Everything was seamlessly brought together in a design created using parametric methods, and specifically, three-dimensional building information modelling (BIM), and its construction was no mean feat.

'DDP is the first public project in Korea to implement advanced 3-dimensional digital construction services that ensure the highest quality and cost controls,' explain the architects. This, knowing the country's key position in the race for advanced technologies, may not come as a surprise. And DDP claims a spot as one of South Korea's most innovative constructions.

The DDP is launched to the public tomorrow, hosting Seoul Fashion Week as well as an exhibition on the architect's work and design approach, entitled Zaha Hadid_360 degrees. The show will remain on display until the end of May, allowing visitors to gain a rare insight into the London-based iconic architect's work and design processes.