First ever Foster + Partners exhibition in Korea opens at Seoul Museum of Art

Future Positive | Norman Foster and Foster + Partners

Seoul Museum of Art, South Korea

25 April 2024 – 21 July 2024

 

‘Future Positive | Norman Foster and Foster + Partners’ introduces the work of renowned architect Norman Foster and his studio to Korean audiences for the first time. The exhibition offers a comprehensive overview of the architecture of Foster and Foster + Partners, the practice he founded in 1967.

Presented in collaboration between the Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA), the exhibition investigates the ground-breaking work of the practice through the interrelated and interdisciplinary themes of sustainability, culture, history, research and technology. Focusing on the importance of human experience in design, it shines a light on Foster + Partners’ unique process and integrated approach to architecture and responsible design.

Looking at projects led by Foster + Partners from the 1960s to the present, 'Future Positive’ pays particular attention to the practice’s significant contributions to public spaces for culture and the arts, including art galleries and museums.

Responsible design and sustainability have been a central theme of Foster + Partners’ work for more than five decades. Through a wide variety of projects, it has pioneered a holistic approach to issues of energy, community, history, water, waste and transport, which remain integral to the practice’s work. Its philosophy for the restoration of existing structures, for example, is aligned to the idea that buildings can be recast and revived through programmatic understanding, sensitive fabric interventions, and a focus on user experience and wellbeing. Featuring several cultural, civic and workplace projects, the exhibition examines the way existing buildings can be enhanced and thoughtfully extended to achieve the needs of art and people for this century and beyond, while saving damaging greenhouse gas emissions through retrofitting.

The practice designed two of the world’s first ecological office towers in Frankfurt and London, and most recently, Bloomberg’s new European Headquarters in London – the world’s most sustainable office building as designed according the BREEAM, and Apple Park in Cupertino – one of the world’s largest naturally ventilated buildings, powered by 100 per cent renewable energy. Most recently, the practice has completed its most sustainable projects to date for the Spanish infrastructure and energy company ACCIONA. The project is a case study for the World Green Building Council and environmental impact is compatible with the original 2°C aim of the Paris Agreement.

The exhibition is on display from 25 April to 21 July 2024.

About Seoul Museum of Art (SeMA)

SeMA, run by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, is a leading art institution in the Republic of Korea founded in 1988. SeMA stands as a pivotal cultural institution within the region and delivers significant projects and presentations for both local and international artists. SeMA has been focused on the regional conversations bridging cultures through Regional Art Series Exhibition and Seoul Mediacity Biennale, reflecting Seoul city as a hub of media art.

SeMA engages in constant dialogue with the world beyond East Asia including Africa, Latin America and the Middle East. It is an attempt to reshape the terrain of contemporary art, which had previously been Western-oriented. SeMA conceives, develops and showcases substantial exhibitions and programs over an extensive period of time through collaboration with institutions from different cultures. Through these practices, SeMA aims to become a locally embedded and internationally connected institution, and continues to stretch its span and networks across the map.

SeMA currently manages a total of seven venues: one main building, two annex buildings, one artist residency, and three specialized platforms for exhibition and events. The museum’s Seosomun Main Building serves as a cultural and networking hub, playing a pivotal role in interconnecting each satellite and developing three additional branches which are set to open by 2025.

About Foster + Partners

Foster + Partners is a global studio for architecture, urbanism and design, rooted in sustainability, which was founded over fifty years ago in 1967 by Norman Foster. Since then, he and the team around him have established an international practice with a worldwide reputation for thoughtful and pioneering design, working as a single studio that is both ethnically and culturally diverse. The studio integrates the skills of architecture with engineering, both structural and environmental, urbanism, interior and industrial design, model and film making, aeronautics and many more – our collegiate working environment is similar to a compact university. These diverse skills make us capable of tackling a wide range of projects, particularly those of considerable complexity and scale. Design is at the core of everything that we do. We design buildings, spaces and cities; we listen, we question and we innovate.