Studio MMK, who have offices in the US and South Korea, will design a music-led cultural complex on an island in Seoul after winning an international architecture competition for the project.

‘Nodeul Dream Island’ will be one of the firm’s first built projects. Located on the Han River, the island will host concerts, festivals, exhibitions and other cultural events.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government had invited architects, landscape architects and urban designers to propose masterplans for the site earlier this year. Entrants were tasked with imagining “a monumental project in terms of public value.”

Studio MMK’s design features new garden and forest areas so that city-dwellers can stay in touch with nature. The island will also feature the concert venues, a market, several leisure pavilions and incubator space for start-up companies.

The architects, led by principal Jihoon Kim, have previously been best known for some innovative competition entries – including a ‘floating forest’ hovering a little way above one of Seoul’s busiest streets.