The Sound of a Hammer Shaped by Clay, Capturing the Breath of a Century-Old Artisan

Born in 1926, the life of Lee Bong-ju, the artisan, is etched with the twists and turns of modern Korean history. He was one of the few artisans who preserved traditional techniques learned in North Pyongan Province, and his life faced a significant turning point in 1986. He suffered a major accident that caused him to lose the vision in his right eye while tempering a piece of metal.

However, he chose the hammer instead of despair. The story of him returning to the workshop just ten days after giving up major surgery to preserve the sensation in his hands symbolizes his artisan spirit. This steadfast self-discipline and regular lifestyle were the forces that enabled him to continue working even at the age of 100.

This building, located in the Mungyeong St. Joseph Healing Village, was originally used as a storage and temporary exhibition space for the artisan's training center. The design firm Studio Heech (led by Park Hee-chan and Lee Dong-wook) chose to transform this space into a narrative space that encompasses his entire life, essentially a museum. The core of the architecture was to layer multiple times in one space, just like his life.

This architecture encapsulates three different times within the space. The red brick exterior of the existing building represents the past, the massive rammed earth wall built inside reflects the artisan's life filled with labor, and the visitors walking between the two walls experience the present time. In this way, layers of different times coexist, adding depth to the space.

Additionally, the interior space was intentionally designed to block external light and sound, creating a cozy atmosphere. This architectural device allows visitors to focus deeply on the subtle light of the metalwork and the resonance of the space without interference from the outside world. Through this, visitors encounter the artisan's time and works in a tranquil atmosphere.

The rammed earth wall, which forms the center of this space, is a construction method specially chosen by Studio Heech. The rammed earth technique is a traditional method of creating solid walls by layering soil and aggregates in a mold and compacting them. They adopted this technique to architecturally express the honest life of the artisan and the work process filled with thousands of hammer strikes.

This rammed earth method also deeply connects with the essence of the Bangjja production process. Copper and tin are alloyed in a meticulous golden ratio of 78 to 22, and only after enduring thousands of hammer strikes does a vessel with a mysterious luster come into being. Similarly, the rammed earth method requires the honest material of earth to be built up through countless compactions to form a solid wall.

Now, the artisan's hammer has been passed down to his son, Master Lee Hyung-geun, and grandson, Lee Ji-ho, creating a history of three generations. This museum tells the story of human dignity and the value of inheritance that lies beyond metalwork. Ultimately, the deepest resonance conveyed by this space is the fact that an honest life of one person becomes the greatest legacy that transcends time.