Korean Job Discussion Forums

[fiveeagles]

What do you think Korean Archaetecture reflects? Where are the beautiful cities of Korea?

Jeju...no
Mokpo...no
Seoul....no
Jeonju...no

Gwangju...maybe?

Busan??? Maybe? Anywhere?

Why is Korea so ugly? Does it reflect the ugliness of its past?

[the eye]

why was korea ugly in the past?
anyway, it's a shame the korean drive for economic growth has reflected what we see around here. but if you check out a few korean design mags, some stuff in it would impress. i've seen some very tranquil villa setups in the koreanGQ of all mags...with grass frontage and everything very light and glassy, really esthetically minded.
and i'm sure they were probably right next to the KTX track.

[RACETRAITOR]

[weatherman]

[Destroyer]

By and large, Korean buildings are dang ugly but in a way beautiful.
The sea of identical apartments out my window, and yours, is art done in a style Architect types call 'Socialist Realism.' Very utilitarian in design and massive in scope these box-buildings can be seen as a sort of embodiment of the peoples people; as the citizens of our nation seek to blend in with one another, forming a sort of Korean, pop-culture gestalt, so too do the buildings. (wah, there's some crazy punctuation in that passage, I don't understand .,;: sorry) So it's really just what you take from it. Yes, they are big and ugly and all the same, but at least they have a unifying theme to work on. That makes them art...
All these wacky new buildings they're puting up, artistic to the layman, with pseudo-american skyscraper overtones and envious undertones are far uglier (IMO) seen that beastly gold building? yuck.

[the eye]

i just thought about my last trip home. i was driving down the 403 near Toronto. out the pasenger side window set back on a ridge, were hundreds of identical cookie cutter homes.
they even looked to be all the same color.

not that much dfferent here, except the lack of space.

[margaret]

I don't know about the architecture but I find Korean cities in general much more enjoyable to look at because they're so colorful and to me the signs are pretty. U. S. cities are grey and the billboards are so ugly.
Margaret

[Wrench]

I think Korean cities are an eye sore. I went to Beijing recently and I was completly impressed by the architecture and the layout.. The whole city looked like they gave a f00k, unlike here.

[fiveeagles]

[VanIslander]

On a sunny day I've found several small Korean cities to be charming, not exactly beautiful, but not ugly either, more like interesting and with character.

To mention but three in this province (Gyeongsangnamdo):

Jinju:


Tongyeong:


Changwon:


As for architecture, there is a VARIETY, though the big cities tend to have row anfter row of cookie cutter apartment high rises. But small cities tend to be designed to encourage more walking (except ones like Changwon). rarely do I think small cities ae "dead", unlike several cities back in Canada made with hollow downtowns and secluded suburbs. Calgary is VERY ugly, I've thought. The locals like it of course. But the urban planning is no more attractive than the apartment clumps around Seoul.

[the eye]

[The Great Toad]

UGLY

Korean Cities Are Ugly

Who has been to Bali and seen the detail of the stonework the courtyard of my hotel like 9 bucks a night was an Eden

Ur on Crack if u say they look Good Seoul is Ugly!
Ok the sidewalks are charming and now and then a nice buildings around but more often it is the same squat box blaaaaaaaa

American Cities may be dirty too and have more poor crazy bums and crime but they look good now Europe Rurope is way better

[fiveeagles]

Thanks Toad! I am mystified that there is even an disagreement on this.

[djsmnc]

I think the first step in the beautification of Korea would be to make a ban on sign clutter.

Buildings in every city, corner, nook, and cranny are covered with cheap vinyl/something synthetic signs plastered with Hangeul.

Go to Seohyun station in Bundang and stand outside of Samsung plaza and tell me that isn't ugly. "But djsmnc, in a way it makes Korea stand out as being different than other places" Whatever. Kimchi is different. Big dirty yellow signs with red ���� �ܰ� Hangeul written on them are a blight.

My hometown made a law (which people thought was quite strict at the time) that banned businesses from putting up signs that are not over or on the door of the establishment. Anyone from the US knows that most cities have 20 meter high McDonalds signs next to the highway which can be seen from miles away. Our city got rid of those and also forced businessowners to keep their shops uniform to the agreed on style of that commercial district. It is a bit much, but Korea would surely benefit from a similar law about those cheap signs they use now.