The Yumin Art Nouveau Collection, a permanent exhibition of Nouveau Art glass collection in Korea designed by Danish Practice JAC Studios, won the title of World Interior of the Year accolade at INSIDE World Festival of Interior in Amsterdam last week.

Both World Building of the Year and World Interior of the Year awards of the 2018 edition of World Architecture Festival and INSIDE World Festival of Interiors were snagged by projects located in Asia, cementing the region’s design prowess as well as its appeal to international talent.  

The exhibition is housed in The Genius Loci building designed by Tadao Ando for the Phoenix Jeju resort complex along the Seopjikoji coastal area in Korea’s scenic Jeju province. 

 “The architecture by Tadao Ando plays a magnificent setting for the exhibition, the architecture is in itself a piece of art and visitors cannot avoid being touched by its beauty,” commented Johan Carlsson, founder of JAC Studios, adding,” The new museum is respectful but also challenges the context of the architecture.”

The Yumin Art Noveau Collection exhibition showcases delicate glass works produced in the Art Nouveau movement between 1870s to 1940s by the legends in decorative arts the likes of  Émile Gallé and brothers Auguste and Antonin Daum.

JAC Studios worked closely with Art Nouveau experts to create an exhibition using glass as the principal material to transform the interiors and welcome areas of the Genius Loci into experiential spaces that introduce the exhibition right from the moment visitors approach the museum. 

“The existing context, an architecture by Tadao Ando, is respected and a new experience has been created with subtlety” cited the jury. “Human sensations are considered: light, barefooted experience and sitting very close to the floor.”

The exhibition had won the ‘Display’ category on the second day of the festival before being crowned World Interior of the Year at the gala awards ceremony on the evening of Friday 30 November held at the Beurs van Berlage in Amsterdam. 

The Yumin Art Nouveau Collection was one of the five category winners at INSIDE Festival of Interiors representing the Indo-Pacific region. The other four are:

B Campus (Shanghai, China)

by AIM Architecture

Winner of the ‘Education’ category

The interior was praised for pairing a vast palette with subtle colour shifts that flood important spaces, which “make for a joyful experience for the users,” said the judges.

BLANK (Shanghai, China)

by Hangzhou AN Interior Design Co

Winner of the ‘Retail’ category

The designers were praise for the space’s clever use of “seductively shaped” sculptural elements that “has manipulated space to deliver intimacy, drama and delight.”

Australian Embassy (Bangkok, Thailand)

by BVN

Winner of the ‘Civic, Culture & Transport’ category

The interior of the embassy was lauded  for facilitating a great connection between the urban fabric and the public space, and also for its transition between the Australian and Thai landscape elements. 

Read our extensive feature on the project in Cubes 92: Design Digestion!

Sunny Apartment (Taichung, Taiwan)

by Very Studio | Che Wang Architects

Winner of the ‘Residential’ category

This apartment in Taiwan praised as “A refreshing take on the spatial organisation of a typical unit flat in a Taiwanese housing” with the “well-researched acoustically designed ceiling” enhances the lightness of the space. 

Congratulations to all the Indo-Pacific winners!

INSIDE World Festival of Interiors is co-located with the World Festival of Architecture. The festival will return in 2019 to RAI Amsterdam once again.  

See the full list of winners at the INSIDE website.

All images courtesy of INSIDE World Interiors Festival.