About me

What if buildings could move? My academic journey begins with this simple question.

Mijin Kim is a PhD student in Architecture at Penn State, conducting research at the Format Lab under the guidance of Professor Benay Gürsoy. Her research keywords are kinetic architecture, responsive facade, robotic construction, and human-robot collaboration. She specializes in soft robotics / innovative materials and related design methodologies for architecture. Since 2018, she has engaged in several interdisciplinary projects, collaborating with Mechanical and Material Engineering experts. She has conducted various full-scale building fabrications, design projects, and robot arm studies. Her current research interests are self-assembly systems, biomaterials, and 4D-material printing. She loves to bring new ideas and technologies into Architecture and share them with collaborators.

She earned her combined bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Architecture with top honors from Ajou University, and previously worked as a research assistant at ARTS (Architectural Research of Technology & Scientific Design Laboratory), Korea University.

“I firmly believe that architects should not only design building plans but also their implementation process. Robotics’ transformative impact on architecture manifests in two key ways: first, robot as a machine for living, and second, robot as a tool. As a building researcher, I always try to present a precise balance between technical knowledge and design principles through logical processes. I dream of constructing resilient, adaptive living buildings, fostering more reciprocal residential environments.”

Contact

Affiliation: Ph.D. Student, College of Art and Architecture, Penn State University
Office: Format Lab, 121 Stuckeman Family Building, University Park, PA, 16802 | USA
Email: mijinkim0714[at]gmail.com / mvk6435[at]psu.edu