Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) 동대문디자인플라자

Dongdaemun Design Plaza, usually just called DDP, is a vast cultural complex designed by the late architect Zaha Hadid and opened in March 2014. Its smooth, windowless-looking shell has no straight facade at all, and it has become one of the most recognisable modern buildings in Seoul. It sits in the middle of the Dongdaemun wholesale fashion district, so a visit combines easily with shopping and with the food stalls of nearby Gwangjang Market.

The building

The structure is clad in 45,133 aluminium panels, each with its own shape, which is what gives the exterior its seamless, liquid look. Seoul Design Foundation, which runs the complex, describes it as the world’s largest free-form (non-linear) building. Inside, long ramps and curving corridors link the different halls, and by day the open plazas around the base work as a public square for residents and visitors.

The complex is divided into several zones:

• Art Hall – large halls used for exhibitions, fashion shows and product launches.
• Museum and Design Lab – the DDP Design Museum, which the operator describes as Korea’s only public design museum, plus galleries and the DDP design store.
• Design Market and Eoullim Plaza – a ground-level shopping street and open plaza around the base of the building.
• Dongdaemun History & Culture Park – the outdoor area with archaeological remains and small exhibition halls on the site’s history.

History of the site

In the Joseon period the land held Hadogam, a military garrison office,, right next to the Seoul city wall. In 1925 the colonial authorities built Gyeongseong Stadium here, later renamed Seoul Stadium and then Dongdaemun Stadium, which hosted national sports events for decades. When the stadium was demolished in 2008, excavations uncovered remains of Hadogam and of Igansumun, a two-arched water gate in the city wall that let a stream flow out of the old capital. The restored wall section and water gate are now part of the history park, alongside a memorial to the stadium.

Tips for visiting

Come in the late afternoon and stay into the evening: the exterior is most striking after dark, when the building is lit and the facade is sometimes used as a canvas for the Seoul Light DDP media-art festival. Exhibitions change constantly and are ticketed individually, so check the official programme first. Paid lockers are available near the Exit 1 entrance and in the Design Lab.

The Cheonggyecheon stream walk runs a few minutes’ walk to the north, and the malls of the Dongdaemun fashion district are right next door. DDP fits well into the second or third day of a Seoul itinerary, after the palaces and before an evening in Myeongdong. For getting around by metro, see our transportation guide.