Illustrating its symbolic colour, the Korean fashion brand Junn.J recently opened its first store celebrating Deep Darkness.

In Korea, last May, the first flagship store of Junn.J opened in a brand new location designed by WGNB.

It’s divided into two floors: the first floor comprising cafe and women’s wear, while the second floor men’s wear.

Natural elements such as light and shadow were used in order to express darkness within space using black – identity colour of Juun.J brand. The shape of the architecture was initiated from geometry that is the basic form in all designs. Juun.J’s flagship store surely has a certain form but in the shape like a shadow without exact shape, which is similar to Juun.J as it invites endless curiosity to people.

“Black is a colour symbolic of Juun.J and the most beautiful shadow out of the shapeless existences is also black.“ If we look at the traditional house structure in the East, large roof files are put above the house basically and the whole structure is absorbed into within the deep and wide shade generated by the awning.

Deep darkness below the awning is shadow as well as black within the space. In an attempt to turn black into space, WGNB organised space by either hanging plenty of objet or separating them and generating shadows. All spaces except white part for women’s wear on the first floor are composed of varied densities of darkness. While the first floor has contrasts with some white part, clothes here are also hung in darkness.

The space of cafe generates various darknesses due to natural light dramatically penetrating from the ceiling. And eaves spreading forward work as an awning and make visitors feel natural light coming as a result of reflection on the garden. They can see the garden from within the space and find another shadow as a tree is floating in the garden. The shape of the architecture is composed of circle, quadrangle and triangle, basic forms in all designs and the architecture is designed with the concept of dark matters of the universe.

Especially, the garden-shaped circle, which is a space drawing natural light, plays an important role in making this dark matter a striking contrast. This architecture and space started very much from the Oriental way of thinking, and the structure of space and formative approach were complete based on the Western style.

WGNB expressed achromatic colour of black as darkness within the space instead of a simple painting and, as far as the used materials are concerned, we diversely applied materials that black has intrinsically instead of painting them in black.

Pictures courtesy of Yongioon Choi.

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