*2010년의 개막과 더불어 새로운 기획을 선보입니다. WIDE WORK의 영문화 작업을 통해 우리 건축의 해외 홍보 역을 자임하는 지면을 준비하였습니다. 그 첫 번째 자료입니다.
Architectural Story on Dream Forest in North Seoul
by Park You-Jin(architect)
Open Field
The main point of development planning of ‘Dream Forest in North Seoul’ is to replace the open-space that goes all the way across the center of the site with the more specific form of the so-called ‘Open Field’. The site surrounded by high-density urban block has, at a glance, a very notional aura, and it was hard to find any different meaning of the site except for a simply-empty place in ruins. The focus of planning keeps the existing abstract form like ‘Void of City’ and enriches the differentiation from other urban parks by means of making ‘a space with many uses’ to the community and the local people.
Prerequisites of the Structures in a Park
The frame of ‘Open Field’ can be completed through a natural combination between a park master plan and an architectural program. This should be equally considered to the outdoor space planning that was usually planned in the area of landscape architecture such as planting and sculptures, because it is hard to complete a generally unified conceptual system under the separation of architecture and landscape architecture that cover the greater part of park appearance in a whole park system. Based on this common recognition, something that we paid attention first was re-definition of ‘Meaning of Place’ that was drawn through accurate investigation on history and geographical features. The site called ‘Dream Land’ for a long time is a reminiscent place to the local people and Seoul citizens, but it was eventually closed and unsightly abandoned in spite of making an attempt of redevelopment several times. At the first stage of the planning, although artificial recovery of place was reviewed on the basis of past heritage, the new birth of a park was decided through full-scale adjustment as a result of reckless development without any grand principle. An alternative plan was transformation of the park into ‘Culture Park’ that has been never seen in Seoul by means of the reorganization using an approach of ‘terrain recycling’ after original appearance without superficial component parts such as monorail, swimming pool and snow-sled-slope is came into view.
Open Field +Hidden Axis
A different role of the buildings in a park is the locations in core areas consisting of a park. ‘Open Field’ being a central grand area of the park is the sum of individual areas classified by their role, and each area shows the visitors a specific background made by altitude difference that is a characteristic of slope. The structures not only take a role as a factor of background, but also switch the background because of being located at boundary line of each area.
The location and arrangement concept of Museum and Glass Pavilion is an example, and the two buildings give the visitors unexpected scenery that is made by their locations at the center of whole area and the top of the park respectively. The method that attracts the flow of human traffic smoothly in virtue of fixing an axis of sight that changes frequently along the park road to one spot and leads aggressively through a compulsory measure is adopted, and it was traditionally used in Buddhist temples and Confucianist academies.
Architecture as an Entity in Scenery
Though each building standing out of axis of the park forms the outer wall, it intersects the axis; is connected to invisible axis each other; and stands at the center after making small area independently. To make someone understand the big difference between a sculpture and a building, it would be more descriptive whether or not internal-external story exists, instead of dictionary definition like existence of binding on land. The last worry at the planning stage also stays at this point, and individual stories are composed under several principles, not completely excluding unified and consistent contents.
Firstly, aggressive adoption of the external terrain.
Difference of altitude having around max 100 meters shows lively intended terrain along the level of height. From the point of planning view, when we pick out a site, it might acts as difficulties because of not having the same condition. On the other hand, the terrain has merits because it has a specific character without any kaleidoscope elevation structure. Because of arranging ‘Performance Hall’ at the previous snow-sled-slope, excavation is difficult due to steep slope, but this slope gives us a various side elevation. ‘Glass Pavilion’ is a outside cozy space in crescent-shape and is a half-underground facility.
Also, the art gallery and restaurant could have dynamic shapes because of their locations at the boundary of slope, and we can enjoy a beautiful scenery inside of the buildings. ‘Outdoor Restroom’ and ‘Visitor’s Parking Lot’ are planned at the place where a slope begins, and they are in harmony with surrounding terrain. ‘Observatory’ located at the highest spot of the park is the last stop of the flow of human traffic, and it provides visitors with a fine view of the whole park. Even though it is not tall as an observatory, Mt. Bukhan and the outskirt of Seoul can be seen on the ‘Observatory’ due to its location of the top of the mountain. This fact gives a meaningful shape to the ‘Observatory’.
Secondly, active exchange with external environment through construction materials.
Even though it is not necessary to examine other parks’ cases. mention of concrete before anything is that concrete is a popular material reminding us. But it was replaced later with zink panel, FC panel and timber after a committee, in the process of examination, pointed out its utility and functionality to public buildings. Instead, Aggressive attraction of surrounding natural environment into the building by means of using glass-curtain-wall is to be interpreted that the users of internal facilities can maintain strong solidarity with backgrounds each other.
Finally, because of slope terrain and most of 2~3 story buildings except for ‘Observatory’, the roofs are revealed to the sight and flows of users. This point is why roof-landscaping is considered and adopted. Principle of adoption is to individually specialize in consideration of structural nature of each building. Open space such as Performance Hall and Art Gallery is to be used as a small observatory at the outside deck. Especially, visitor’s parking lot which is isolated but spacious can be highly utilized with setting solar absorber plates and making theme park. This can offset the image of huge structure of parking lot and ,at the same time, have the merit of expansion effect of the park. These measures could be analyzed that each building consists of natural factors of newly born park terrain, resulting in completely assimilating to ‘Open Field’.
(English Translation from Korean Text by K.Y.Cho)