Seamarq Hotel in Gangneung, South Korea by Meier & Partners Architects

American architect Richard Meier says his first Korean project, the Seamarq Hotel, has qualities that are similar to influential homes he designed in the 1960s and 70s. Located in Gangneung, South Korea, the hotel is 60 kilometres from the city of PyeongChang, which will host the 2018 Winter Olympics. Meier's hotel is part of a revitalisation effort in the region in preparation for the international sporting event. The resort property, which covers 52,800 square metres (568,700 square feet), overlooks the East Sea, Gyeongpo Lake, and the Taebaek Mountains. This is the Meier's first project in Korea. "Our primary goal for the Seamarq Hotel has been to create a strong sense of place by enhancing and transforming the existing site in a dramatic way," said Richard Meier, who established his eponymous New York-based practice more than 50 years ago. In 1984, he received the Pritzker Prize. "Many of the cues for the design came from the site — its light, its landscape, its topography," the 81-year-old architect said. Meier said the Seamarq Hotel relates to some of his earlier projects, such as the Smith House (1967) and the Douglas House (1973), which have open living spaces, transparency, and "an openness to the nature around the site". Read the full story on Dezeen: http://www.dezeen.com/2016/02/03/rich... Subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest architecture and design movies: http://bit.ly/1tcULvh