Honam University Professor Yoon Jooyeon’s Book "Building the Universe" Selected for Sejong Books by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism

Selected in the Science and Technology Category of General Knowledge Books
Exploring the Meaning of "Home" Through the Lens of Architecture and Life

Honam University announced on September 2 that Professor Yoon Jooyeon's book, "Building the Universe" (Heybooks), from the Department of Architecture, has been selected in the general knowledge category for the 2026 Sejong Books, an initiative organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Publication Industry Promotion Agency of Korea.

Professor Yoon Juyeon of Honam University Book 'Building the Universe'. Provided by Honam University

This year, the Sejong Books program received a total of 6,844 submissions across the general knowledge and academic categories, with 429 titles in the general knowledge category and 345 in the academic category making up a final selection of 774 books. "Building the Universe" by Professor Yoon was chosen as one of the 39 selected works in the science and technology field.

The selection committee evaluated this year's chosen books as achieving a balance of engaging themes, planning, writing, and editing, with a focus on reader-friendliness, readability, and educational value. In particular, books that maintained professional expertise while also being easily accessible to general readers were highly rated.

Published in September 2025, "Building the Universe — The Drama of Life and Space Created by Architects and Homeowners Together" reexamines the meaning of "home," where we live every day, from the perspective of architecture and life.

Centered on the single-family house "Uju" in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi Province, the book details the entire process of creating a home, from the initial meeting between architect and homeowner, through design, budget coordination, construction, and move-in. Rather than seeing a house as a mere asset, it considers it a space where tastes, relationships, and time accumulate, asking readers not "what kind of house will you build," but "what kind of life will you live."

Professor Yoon, who is both an architect and an educator, studied architecture at Ewha Womans University and graduated from the Berlage Institute in the Netherlands, accumulating hands-on experience at major architecture firms both in Korea and abroad. She has since operated the architectural firm "Appropriate Architecture ofaa," designing a variety of residential projects, and is currently a professor in the Department of Architecture at Honam University.

Meanwhile, the selected Sejong Books will be distributed to more than 2,000 public and small libraries, welfare and humanities facilities, and cultural institutions overseas. Accordingly, "Building the Universe" is also expected to be widely introduced to readers both in Korea and abroad. This selection is anticipated to serve as a springboard for Professor Yoon’s first book in her ongoing exploration of "stories about homes and people," helping her reach a broader audience.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.