Traveling north beyond the surf towns that line Korea’s East Sea, the noise of tourists gradually fades, giving way to a quiet shoreline. The sea feels almost still here in Goseong County, located at the northernmost edge of Gangwon Province, where the coast meets the DMZ.

For architect Wook Choi and artist Jinnie Seo, who grew up in Busan and California, respectively, the sea carries a sense of longing rooted in the landscapes of their childhoods. For Wook, it’s the horizontal landscape; for Jinnie, it’s the quiet comfort of watching the movement of the waves.

During a visit to the area, they decided to build a house for a life by the water. The site lies just a two-hour drive from Seoul: At the end of a dead-end road on a hillside where small buildings cluster closely together, their modest house slips quietly into the slope.

At ground level, where the house meets the land, the exterior is finished in gray troweled concrete; from the first floor upward, the surfaces shift to a white EIFS finish. “Choosing a neutral finish was a practical decision—it was essential for withstanding the local climate,” Wook explains. The mass is deliberately fragmented so that, from the entrance of the neighborhood, only a small tearoom on the top floor is visible—the house never appears all at once.

From the garage, a full-height window frames the entry; a wooden door opens to a small hall that offers a quiet, welcoming transition into the house. As we climb the rhythmically turning staircase, views of the sea open up through large windows.

The bedroom is positioned toward the back of the middle level, while the terrace outside serves as a shared yard between the bedroom and the living room. “I wanted each floor to hold a single program,” says Wook. Reflecting his preference for a pared-down way of living, the plan stacks a study, a living room, and a dining room, one atop the other.

Each of these spaces is oriented toward the waterfront. “It feels like a very personal kind of sea—my own sea,” Jinnie says. While the couple’s house in Seoul is set deep in the mountains, where nature’s changes are dramatic, their Goseong house offers a sense of comfort shaped by the steady, repetitive patterns of the ocean.

In the early morning, Wook—who enjoys watching the sunrise—usually reads in his study, while Jinnie, drawn to twilight, sketches in the living room as the day fades. The third floor is a place where they come together after spending time apart, sharing meals and conversation. Above all, they cherish unhurried walks along the beach with their dog, Agi.

Completed in late 2019, the house became a source of comfort during the pandemic, and today it serves as a retreat entirely removed from meetings and work. “It’s a small town, but the nature here still feels elemental,” says Wook. “The comfort it offers makes traveling elsewhere unnecessary—it lets us step outside of everyday life.”

Read about the couple’s Seoul home in Dwell’s January/February 2026 issue.

Related Reading:

They Pieced Together the Home of a Lifetime on a Mountain in the Middle of Seoul

A South Korean Couple Build a Place to Retire on Land They Farmed for More Than a Decade

A Gabled Corridor Runs Through This Playful South Korean Home

Project Credits:

Architect of Record, Landscape, Lighting, Cabinetry, and Interior Design: One O One Architects / @oneoone.archive

Builder/General Contractor: Jehyo

Structural Engineer: Eun Structure

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This Coastal Home in South Korea Is All About the Sea