Every Hanok is unique, and a unique exhibit exploring some of the world¡¯s most famous Hanok—the traditional Korean home—is now on display at the Korean Embassy¡¯s KORUS House in Washington D.C., organized by the National Trust of Korea.

The immersive exhibit of vivid backlit images and scale models draws heavily from Bukchon, or Northern Village, a fashionable district in Seoul with hundreds of hanok homes and shops that were restored beginning in 2001 and now comprise a traditional urban landscape.

¡°Now, the Bukchon area is one of the most attractive tourist places in Seoul, with many shops and restaurants of hanok style,¡± said Yi Song-mi, Professor Emerita at the Academy of Korean Studies, and curator of the exhibit, which opened in Seoul and will also visit New York.

Also featured is the residence of the U.S. ambassador to Korea, a traditional hanok with an American twist known as the Habib House in honor of Phillip Habib, U.S. ambassador to the Republic of Korea from 1971-1974. Several current and former U.S. and Korean ambassadors were among the guest at the opening reception on Oct. 23 who shared their thoughts on hanok design.

Korea¡¯s current Ambassador to the United States, Lee Tae-sik, quickly noted the superiority of his counterpart¡¯s residence in Seoul compared to his own in Washington D.C. ¡°The Habib house is much better,¡± he said, ¡°and it¡¯s much more Korean style than mine here in this town.¡±

In his welcoming remarks, Lee also spoke of the challenge and importance of preserving Korea¡¯s traditions.

¡°In the process of becoming an advanced nation, we have at time fallen out of touch with part of our traditional cultural heritage,¡± Lee said. ¡°In order to sustain this important cultural connection with our roots and origin, we have long made great effort to not only remind Korean citizens of the special, unique qualities of our Korean cultural heritage, but also to continue to introduce those qualities to the rest of the world.¡±

Alexander Vershbow, the U.S. ambassador to the Republic of Korea from 2005-2008, recalled fondly his three years living at Habib House. ¡°We really came to love hanok architecture and the feeling of serenity that it inspired,¡± he said. ¡°The beautiful play of light on the ceiling, the choice of natural materials, the wonderful hand craftsmanship¡¦ The openness of the house and the airy feeling inside allows people to communicate with nature. I think that¡¯s something that¡¯s very special about hanok.

¡°Plus, it was a wonderful sanctuary,¡± he added. ¡°When things got a little hot in Seoul in my final months¡¦nothing could have been nicer than to retreat to the sanctuary of my hanok.¡±

¡°The United States doesn¡¯t usually make very good decisions when it comes to real estate,¡± Vershbow went on to say, ¡°but I think¡¦we all owe a great debt to Ambassador Philip Habib, who fought a fierce battle with the State department to convince them that a new residence, which needed to be build because the old one fell apart, should be build not in the standard State Department tradition of building an American house where the American ambassador is going to live, but to respect out host country and the historic site on which it was located by building a Hanok.¡±

Professor Yi described the philosophy of harmony behind hanok design in her opening presentation. Each hanok consists of a tile roof and a stone foundation, representing heaven and earth, with the primarily wooden living space in between, connecting the two.

A particular hanok in Bukchon known as the Snug House for its small but cozy size exemplifies this simple elegance of life in a hanok. Said Yi, ¡°In order to move to this small hanok, [the residents] had to get rid of so many things. So it¡¯s a kind of tradeoff. If you want very spacious modern living, then you move to an apartment, but if you want something natural, close to nature, very quiet, and having snow on your grounds and so on, then you move to a small hanok in the Gahoe-dong area of Bukchon and get rid of a lot of things.¡±