Ready Mixed Concrete Hanoks
Much of the charm of traditional hanoks lies in the endless variation in both overall design and small details. This reflects both their hand-crafted nature, the irregularities in the natural materials used, and the different ways hanoks would be placed into their landscapes following geomantic ideas.
In contrast, the aesthetic of most contemporary buildings in Seoul relies on the repetitive regularity of industrialized forms, pre-fabricated materials, and standardized templates. The worst examples are seen in the repetitive arrays of identikit apartment buildings found throughout the city. The tremendous design potential of modern techniques and materials quite eludes those responsible for the planning, design, and construction of the city.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government is now encouraging the building of a new generation of hanoks in the same depressing mould as its apartment buildings. These new hanoks are delivered to their sites in tanks of ready mixed concrete. After a few hours of pouring concrete, all that is left to do is the addition of decorative pieces of wood to give these new buildings all the qualities of a movie scenery on a back lot.
David Kilburn
Tags: concrete, hanok, kahoi-dong, remicon, smg