Merry, GO Round is a café that provides a hospitable, up-beat place to rest and rejuvenate in bustling Seoul.
The warm atmosphere within the café is offset from the cool grays found in the granite façade and sidewalk outside. A small deck terrace area allows for outdoor seating, an extension of the café’s warm welcome. The quaint yellow folding doors and window offer something familiar, but their elongated height emphases the uniquely vertical space within.
On the interior, high ceilings are celebrated by using long, thin hanging exposed incandescent string lights to fill the volume with warm tones.
In order to avoid the large square column in the center of the space from seeming too crowding, we placed the column through a long, linear table. The table and the column work together, appearing to mutually support one another. People can interact around this central table individually or in small groups while utilizing the column as a backdrop.
Warm yellows found in the natural wood tables and furniture contrast with navy tones found in the chairs and cushions, balancing the space with complementary colors and generating a harmonious atmosphere.The name of the café, Merry, Go Round, was woven into the spatial concept and ceiling lighting designs. The arched motion experienced when riding on a merry go round is expressed by varying heights of the hanging lights to form small arches. The space circulates around the central column, much like a merry go round uses moving columns.
The space is a merry go round frozen in time. Time stands still here, giving the customer a chance to contemplate, converse, and sip coffee slowly in an otherwise fast-tracked city