Community Highlights: Meet Lee Ahn of Beyond My Space

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lee Ahn.

Hi Lee, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I have been working in the field of interior design for nearly 30 years. I began my career in Korea after completing my studies in the field, initially focusing on hotel and luxury retail design. At that time, Korea was undergoing rapid development, and the construction boom was just beginning to shape public awareness of interior design. In that environment, I was exposed to five-star hotels that required international standards, as well as globally recognized luxury brands with well-established design concepts. Through these experiences, I came to understand that space goes beyond form and plays a meaningful role in shaping human experience and perception.

My move to the United States was not entirely a personal decision, but rather the result of following my husband, who had been assigned to Samsung’s Los Angeles office. Around the same time, I felt a strong need for personal renewal, so I stepped away from work and returned to studying. Starting over in a new environment—including preparing for the TOEFL exam again—was not easy, but it gave me a broader and more grounded perspective. At the time, I did not expect to remain in the United States for such a long period of time.

Since then, I’ve worked across a wide range of projects—from custom homes to schools, headquarters, medical offices, and cafés—developing my own approach through direct experience and on-site judgment. Over time, I came to understand that space shapes how we think, feel, and live.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It would be difficult to say that my path has always been smooth. The field of interior design requires the integration of many details, and through this process, one naturally begins to recognize differences in skill and service cost. One of the greatest limitations I experienced over many years in the field was that, due to the unavoidable constraints of time investment, high-quality design requiring a substantial amount of work could only be offered to a small number of high-end clients. In addition, I repeatedly encountered situations where many general clients could not intuitively understand 2D drawings, resulting in a gap between the expected outcome and the actual result.

In order to address these issues, I felt the need for a new approach, and through that process, I shifted toward developing a design system utilizing AI and an online service model. However, moving away from traditional methods and building a new structure was not easy, and the market did not immediately understand this approach.

Nevertheless, the goal of providing design that more people can truly understand and experience remained clear, and based on that direction, I have been developing a faster, more accessible approach to design than traditional methods creating a more affordable workflow, while ensuring that each design is reviewed and refined by a designer, preserving a level of detail that automated systems alone cannot achieve.

We’ve been impressed with Beyond My Space, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Beyond My Space is a design studio created to provide solutions that more people can easily understand and apply in their own spaces. To achieve this, we offer two primary services.

The first is the “Done for You” service. Traditional design methods often require significant time and labor, which limits high-quality design to a small group of high-end clients. In addition, many general clients find it difficult to visualize 2D drawings, resulting in a gap between expectations and the final outcome. To address this, I developed a system that transforms a single client-provided image into a fully realized 3D design concept, making it easier to understand for those who struggle to visualize 2D drawings. This process is faster and more efficient, while still maintaining a consistent level of detail and quality through direct designer review. It allows for refined, human-reviewed design rather than purely automated results, offered at an accesible level.

The second is “The Signature” service. This service goes beyond visual aesthetics by incorporating spatial planning and layout principles derived from traditional Korean royal architecture into modern interior design. It approaches space not as a static structure, but as an environment that influences the user’s psychological state and daily life. These principles are based on long-established design concepts that have been passed down and applied over generations, particularly among long-rooted families, as a practical method for maintaining balance and stability through space.

Within this framework, my work aims to create spaces that actively influence the user’s psychological stability and overall life flow, which is closely aligned with principles of environmental psychology.

Currently, Beyond My Space operates as an online-based platform, providing design services that help people better visualize, understand, and experience their spaces in a more intuitive way.

Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
One surprising aspect of my work is that while many people assume it is primarily visual or fast, AI-driven design, it is actually based on a highly structured and human-centered approach.

We work from a single image and use an efficient system to develop each design, but every project is ultimately shaped through careful consideration of how the space will truly be experienced. While the process may appear simple and fast on the surface, it reflects a continuous effort to incorporate balance, flow, and the user’s psychological comfort.

In the end, our work is not about speed or automation, but about making thoughtful design more accessible, while creating an opportunity for people to experience the depth of traditional Eastern spatial wisdom, now able to be shared and experienced more freely across cultures.

Pricing:

• 1. Done for You service : $399.00/per image, besed on a single image_includes a fully develloped 3D concept, need 2 images per room.
• 2. Basic Floor Plan for #1 : $399.00/ per room, Simple 2D layout upon request as a visual reference
• 3. Eastern Spatial Insight : $150.00/ per person
• 4. The Signature Service : Custom Pricing based on project depth
• 5. Personalized Eastern Wisdom Analisis : $300.00

Contact Info:

• Website: https://beyondmyspace.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beyondmyspace99/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leeahn
• Other: https://substack.com/@modili