Genesis, a global luxury automobile brand, has announced the unveiling of Genesis House New York, a sophisticated oasis located in the heart of New York City’s Meatpacking District, adjacent to Little Island and the High Line. Opening its doors to the public on Friday, November 19, Genesis House promises to offer extraordinary experiences influenced by Korean culture and community, culinary excellence, and innovative architecture and technology.
Since its launch, Genesis has unveiled a number of concept cars in New York, the city that leads the way when it comes to luxury and trends. The brand’s decision to unveil these models in such a trendy city reflects its confidence in its designs. Opening Genesis House in the same location is another progressive move for the brand – one that once again projects its confidence to the world. From its new oasis in the city, Genesis will showcase its luxurious and innovative brand through various types of experiences.
Designed by the Seoul-based architecture firm Suh Architects, the 46,000-plus square foot (approximately 4,340 square meters) space is audacious in design, progressive in function, and distinctly Korean throughout, inspiring the community to gather in a sanctuary that offers nourishment of body and mind. Genesis House’s curated programs will engage New York in cultural conversations about design, food, travel, health, and future mobility – season after season.
“Genesis House is not just a showroom. This is a sophisticated oasis. The place where we share our inspirations at the heart of New York City,” said Jay Chang, Global Head of the Genesis Brand. “It will show the world who we are as a brand: audacious, progressive, and distinctly Korean.”
“At Genesis, we welcome customers as if they are guests in our own house,” added Chang. “We want our guests to feel Genesis’ sincerity, and strive to provide them with the right experience at the right time. This defines our brand values.”
Genesis House is a custom-designed space that showcases the brand in harmony and balance with its surroundings.High ceilings supported by massive columns and Corten steel, LED lighting, copper highlights and smooth oak flooring immediately communicate an industrial aesthetic that is complemented by eclectic displays of art.
As the showpiece of Genesis House, the second floor harbors the most iconic elements of distinctly Korean culture through refined, contemporary design. Whether in the restaurant, Tea Pavilion, or library, stacked oak beams and shingles unify the space under a single traditionalKorean roofscape.
Features and amenities of Genesis House include:
- Genesis House Restaurant curated by Onjium: The nearly 9,600-square-foot (approximately 890 square meters) Genesis House Restaurant marks the first international expansion for Onjium, a Michelin-starred restaurant and cultural institute from Seoul that is dedicated to creating a new and lasting heritage that takes inspiration from Korean traditional clothing, food, and housing. Onjium celebrates the ancient stories and flavors of Korean Noble Class cuisine in a new light, marrying traditional techniques found in old recipes and noble households dating back to the 1300s with progressive elements of Slow Food philosophy and thoughtful sourcing. Led by Onjium artisans Cho Eun-hee and Park Sungbae, the team brings its carefully crafted blend of Korean flavors to New York, which are rooted in the seasons and traditional fermentation techniques. The restaurant’s sophisticated menu is a harmony of surprising flavors, featuring the finest local and imported ingredients, with both modern and traditional techniques presenting iconic Korean recipes like suranchae, a seafood recipe that was handed down through generations by a noble family in Gyeongju. An authentic selection of banchan (side dishes) and beverages augment the dining experience.
- Tea Pavilion curated by Arumjigi: Inspired by the tastes of connoisseurs, the Tea Pavilion is a veranda-like living room space featuring customized boryo floor seating where guests are traditionally received by their host. The pavilion borrows motifs from the chaekgado painting style to visualize the philosophy of virtuous scholars known as seonbi. Serving as walls to enclose the space, a gridded bookshelf was designed to showcase collectibles such as monographs, writing and musical instruments, ceramics, and other artifacts related to the leisurely lives of seonbi. The windows of this library pavilion frame panoramic views of the Hudson River and the High Line beyond, which guests can enjoy while reading and sipping tea. Led by a trained tea specialist, the Genesis House Tea Ceremony will serve as a symbolic experience of hospitality as Genesis House welcomes its guests to refresh and recharge.
- Showroom: The main floor offers guests an opportunity to experience the latest Genesis vehicles in a relaxed environment. Suh Architects framed Genesis vehicles as finely crafted objects of desire, using reflections from a tessellated mirror display to amplify their seductive engineering. These glass cases of telescoping linear light are hung on surfaces of exposed concrete, creating a unique art installation. A juxtaposition of raw materials and refined engineering characterizes the interior envelope throughout the showroom. Metallic mesh curtains are one of the distinct first-floor features. A shimmering perimeter of translucent copper envelops the Genesis House at street level, beckoning visitors to bring their curiosity indoors. Once inside, the veiled machines are revealed as the latest models of state-of-the-art engineering, highlighting key Genesis elements such as the Parabolic Line and Two Lines design cues. Finally, a flip-dot wall installation comprised of over 91,000 metallic discs draws visitors in with its copper waves of swirling patterns.
- Cellar Stage: The Cellar Stage is located below the ground floor in a voluminous event space that runs the length of the building. Outfitted with floor-to-ceiling LED-lit staging and state-of-the art audio-visual technology, it is a space that is dedicated not only to launching new vehicles, but also to conducting thought leadership summits and hosting engaging events.
- Library curated by Assouline and Arumjigi: Curated by LVMH publisher Assouline, the Genesis House Library is filled with special edition books, luxury display items, and unique accessories. Together, Assouline and Arumjigi have sourced distinctly Korean books and collections from around the world that discuss art, design, food, and travel. The Genesis House publication series will introduce original publications from Genesis House that highlight elements of Korean culture. The Genesis House Tea Book and Cook Book will be the first and second editions of the publication series.
- The Terrace Garden: The outdoor terrace and garden offer guests an unobstructed view of the High Line. Spanning about 9,500 square feet (approximately 882 square meters), the terrace is surrounded by a traditional Korean landscape of white sand and gravel and adorned with greenery, extending Genesis’ views to the Hudson River and the High Line, the artery of Lower Manhattan.
In addition to welcoming the general public, specially trained Genesis House curators will welcome guests via reservation, promoting the ethos of a shared oasis for cultural and commercial cross-pollination. The curators will introduce details of each model in various languages, including English, French, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, and more.
Moreover, Genesis House will provide a highly sophisticated level of hospitality that is based on Korean customs for treating guests. Those who visit Genesis House will be treated as Genesis’ son-nim – ‘son’ meaning ‘guest’ and ‘nim’ being an honorific. This reflects the Korean virtue of providing the best to those who visit your home to see you.
Genesis House will be open to the public from Tuesday to Sunday and closed on Mondays. From Tuesday to Thursday and on Sunday, it will be open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. On Fridays and Saturdays, it will be open for one hour longer.
