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Slow Sowel Street

Street-driven community-farming regeneration
 
UIA World Congress, Seoul 2017 International Idea Competition 

Site : Sowol 20 street,Yongsan-gu, Seoul, Korea
Team : Gayoung Lee   Heejin Lee   Sangji Han
Role :   Concept develop, Visualization

The speed of changing on streets in Haebangchon area has been getting faster and faster forced by commercial property. Recently, the gentrification of the city has been key issue in a way to develop the old town as big apartment blocks or a part of grand green axis.  Despite its big trials, Sowol 20 street still has its own liveliness and complexity driven by old and new communities such as Sunchun fraternity, Sinheung Market guild, Haebangchon art initiatives, Namsangol magazine, Yongsan FM radio station, alternative research units, youth seminar group and multicultural family support center by church. Not only that, since the given site, Sowol 20 street is placed on “Maroo of Namsan”, the highest flatland of Namsan mountain, it belongs geographically rich nature. 
 To extremely make use of its natural advantage, we propose community farming regeneration, making the speed of street and change slow. “Farming” is the art of complex communication with people, land, vegetation and insects as part of huge ecosystem by deeply understanding and practicing its mechanism of sun, wind, water and the original land of Mother Nature like Namsan. In the eastern world, people used to learn how to deal with the nature by farming the land divided by 24 Solar term. We believe the way to cultivate land corresponding with different 24 Solar terms in four seasons can change the Haebangchon village with sustainable, voluntary and open growth embracing traditional and fresh dynamics by itself, not driven by a dominant administration.

 

Process of Slow Sowol Street
Haebangchon, the street facing fast changes

Haebangchon has been highly dense with residential area since 1949 after Korean War. Eben if the old village is located right below Namsan, full of natural resources such as sunlight, water, wind, fertile soil, plants and insects, its land has been fully covered with asphalt-paved because of road infrastructure for cars in compact housing area with no green and public space, isolated from Namsan ecology.
In 2017, the village is sick of less children, higher commercial rent fee and lack of public spaces, with eventually makes the street fast-changing due to gentrification. 

 

Interactive seasonal-cycling of “Slow Sowol Street” in 24 solar term

Following seosonal-cycle of traditional solar term, farming programs for each season are suggested. By bringing in changes of nature into farming and community activity, slow sowol street embrace the slow changes created by environmant. 

 

Sowol Street Program Zone
Sowol Street Program Zone
HBC community creative hub zone
HBC community creative hub zone
Seasons timeline
Modular Plots of Street Typology
Section
Horizontal section of “Slow Sowol Street“
Community farm zone_ spring
Kid’s play park zone_ summer
Community street zone_ fallpic4
HBC community creative hub zone_ fal

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