NTK's US Hanok Exhibitions
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David Kilburn
Sep 19, 2008, 3:49:01 AM9/19/08
to kahoidong
Hello everyone
The National Trust of Korea’s travelling hanok show in the USA (LA,
NY, DC) is probably the same or similar to one they held in Seoul last
year.
In which case, two of the new hanoks featured are likely to be our
neighbours Kahoi Dong 31-95 and Kahoi-Dong 31-96
About Kahoi Dong 31-95
http://www.kahoidong.com/kh06012006.htm
http://www.kahoidong.com/restoration.html
http://www.kahoidong.com/pix01.htm
About Kahoi-Dong 31-96
http://www.kahoidong.com/undermining.html
http://www.kahoidong.com/restaurant.htm
In each case, these sites were originally home to hanoks of roughly
the same age as ours. When surveyed in the run up to the original
Bukchon plan, both were declared to be in excellent condition. Like
our own, both were also in the S1 preservation zone that supposedly
affords the highest level of protection.
In each case, the original hanoks were totally demolished. Not a
single stone or piece of wood remained when the sites were cleared.
The new buildings were declared to be a restoration project,
subsidized with grants from the Seoul Metropolitan Government, and
officially certified as hanoks (a designation denied to ours), and
given commercial licenses.
While both buildings might have been excellent additions to many
neighbourhoods in Seoul and may even be considered by some as modern
interpretations of hanok principles, the underlying issue is why SMG
chose to demolish some of the last few original hanoks, and use public
money designated for preservation and restoration to subsidize modern
commercial buildings.
We have a long running court case against the owners of Kahoi-Dong
31-96. This began in April 2005 and still has no end in sight. Our
suit claims damage to our own house, the usurpation of some of our
land, and breach of various construction laws and regulations, and
more. In the first hearing, our case was rejected – the judge said our
evidence was irrelevant to his decision and refused to request SMG and
Jong-no to provide various documents that should be publicly
available but which can no longer be found! This is now with the
Appeal Court.
From this, I trust you can appreciate my sceptism about the
credentials and purpose of the National Trust of Korea.
David
The National Trust of Korea’s travelling hanok show in the USA (LA,
NY, DC) is probably the same or similar to one they held in Seoul last
year.
In which case, two of the new hanoks featured are likely to be our
neighbours Kahoi Dong 31-95 and Kahoi-Dong 31-96
About Kahoi Dong 31-95
http://www.kahoidong.com/kh06012006.htm
http://www.kahoidong.com/restoration.html
http://www.kahoidong.com/pix01.htm
About Kahoi-Dong 31-96
http://www.kahoidong.com/undermining.html
http://www.kahoidong.com/restaurant.htm
In each case, these sites were originally home to hanoks of roughly
the same age as ours. When surveyed in the run up to the original
Bukchon plan, both were declared to be in excellent condition. Like
our own, both were also in the S1 preservation zone that supposedly
affords the highest level of protection.
In each case, the original hanoks were totally demolished. Not a
single stone or piece of wood remained when the sites were cleared.
The new buildings were declared to be a restoration project,
subsidized with grants from the Seoul Metropolitan Government, and
officially certified as hanoks (a designation denied to ours), and
given commercial licenses.
While both buildings might have been excellent additions to many
neighbourhoods in Seoul and may even be considered by some as modern
interpretations of hanok principles, the underlying issue is why SMG
chose to demolish some of the last few original hanoks, and use public
money designated for preservation and restoration to subsidize modern
commercial buildings.
We have a long running court case against the owners of Kahoi-Dong
31-96. This began in April 2005 and still has no end in sight. Our
suit claims damage to our own house, the usurpation of some of our
land, and breach of various construction laws and regulations, and
more. In the first hearing, our case was rejected – the judge said our
evidence was irrelevant to his decision and refused to request SMG and
Jong-no to provide various documents that should be publicly
available but which can no longer be found! This is now with the
Appeal Court.
From this, I trust you can appreciate my sceptism about the
credentials and purpose of the National Trust of Korea.
David
soljung
Sep 20, 2008, 4:34:31 PM9/20/08
to kahoidong
Hello David,
After reading the Korea Times article, I completely appreciate your
skepticism about this upcoming exhibit.
One of the things that particularly interested me was the fact that
the exhibit doesn't feature any of the "famous" hanoks that are mapped
on the Bukchon maps that are scattered around the Kahoi-dong area for
tourists to navigate themselves with. Obviously, the government hasn't
been rash enough to destroy the birthplaces of queens and certain
yangbans but why haven't they thought about making these historical
sites internationally famous?
Also, I was unaware of the fact that there was a hanok in Paris.
Perhaps now I can understand why when Pablo tried to talk to the
French tourists about Kahoi-dong, they refused his help, saying that
they already knew everything. There does seem to be a small but
growing interest in Korea in Paris now, considering the fact that
recently a Korean textile brand, Vin, was invited to showcase their
work at an arts and crafts festival in France. (Vin actually has their
main HQ/workshop in Samcheongdong, in a beautiful hanok. It is the
perfect place to showcase their textiles.)
Lastly, it seems like Korea Times was boasting all the important
aspects of the hanok: its harmony with nature, scientific structure,
aesthetic, and historical importance. It will be interesting to see
how the concrete and steel comes into the "wellbing" (a butchered
Korean version of the term "well-being") aspect of hanoks.
These are just some thoughts for now. I look forward to what other
revelations and discoveries may come after the Oct. 6th NYC opening.
Best,
Sol
On Sep 19, 3:49 am, David Kilburn <dakilb...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hello everyone
>
> The National Trust of Korea’s travelling hanok show in the USA (LA,
> NY, DC) is probably the same or similar to one they held in Seoul last
> year.
>
> In which case, two of the new hanoks featured are likely to be our
> neighbours Kahoi Dong 31-95 and Kahoi-Dong 31-96
>
> About Kahoi Dong 31-95
>
> http://www.kahoidong.com/kh06012006.htmhttp://www.kahoidong.com/restoration.htmlhttp://www.kahoidong.com/pix01.htm
>
> About Kahoi-Dong 31-96
>
> http://www.kahoidong.com/undermining.htmlhttp://www.kahoidong.com/restaurant.htm
After reading the Korea Times article, I completely appreciate your
skepticism about this upcoming exhibit.
One of the things that particularly interested me was the fact that
the exhibit doesn't feature any of the "famous" hanoks that are mapped
on the Bukchon maps that are scattered around the Kahoi-dong area for
tourists to navigate themselves with. Obviously, the government hasn't
been rash enough to destroy the birthplaces of queens and certain
yangbans but why haven't they thought about making these historical
sites internationally famous?
Also, I was unaware of the fact that there was a hanok in Paris.
Perhaps now I can understand why when Pablo tried to talk to the
French tourists about Kahoi-dong, they refused his help, saying that
they already knew everything. There does seem to be a small but
growing interest in Korea in Paris now, considering the fact that
recently a Korean textile brand, Vin, was invited to showcase their
work at an arts and crafts festival in France. (Vin actually has their
main HQ/workshop in Samcheongdong, in a beautiful hanok. It is the
perfect place to showcase their textiles.)
Lastly, it seems like Korea Times was boasting all the important
aspects of the hanok: its harmony with nature, scientific structure,
aesthetic, and historical importance. It will be interesting to see
how the concrete and steel comes into the "wellbing" (a butchered
Korean version of the term "well-being") aspect of hanoks.
These are just some thoughts for now. I look forward to what other
revelations and discoveries may come after the Oct. 6th NYC opening.
Best,
Sol
On Sep 19, 3:49 am, David Kilburn <dakilb...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hello everyone
>
> The National Trust of Korea’s travelling hanok show in the USA (LA,
> NY, DC) is probably the same or similar to one they held in Seoul last
> year.
>
> In which case, two of the new hanoks featured are likely to be our
> neighbours Kahoi Dong 31-95 and Kahoi-Dong 31-96
>
> About Kahoi Dong 31-95
>
>
> About Kahoi-Dong 31-96
>
> http://www.kahoidong.com/undermining.htmlhttp://www.kahoidong.com/restaurant.htm
David Kilburn
Sep 21, 2008, 2:27:47 AM9/21/08
to kahoidong
Dear Sol,
The exclusion of the few large, old, famous hanoks in or near
kahoidong would indeed be an extraordinary omission if the purpose of
the exhibition were simply portray the unique nature of hanok
architecture, how this has evolved, and how it can be re-interpreted
using modern materials for modern times.
Extraordinary too not to trace the evolution of Kahoidong from the
homeland of the Yangban to that of the Seomin - an interesting chapter
of both social and architectural history. It would be strange also to
omit portraying how the newly built hanoks fitted into a landscape
populated with much older houses - especially since the relation
between a house and the landscape are important concepts for hanok
architecture.
When you consider the richness and the range of contemporary American
architecture - from individual houses to corporate skyscapers - and
the innovation in materials, tools, and techniques also in the USA,
how strange it would be to have a hanok exhibition that simply looks
at the style and appearance of the very very new. The major museums of
the USA, their patrons, and visitors are all quite sophisticated about
those aspects of other cultures that interest them. Those with some
interest in Asian cultures might even consider the hanok exhibit very
one-dimensional.
If this is what comes to pass, I think it might be worth asking what
is the real purpose of the exhibition? Who is the real audience? Is it
possible that the whole event is designed simply to be heralded in
Korean media as a triumph of culture and, in doing so, validate the
illegal way the new buildings have been constructed? Is this a PR
offensive to prepare the ground for Bukchon Plan No 2, when Seoul City
will execute the Final Solution to the Hanok Problem backed up by
rapturous reviews in Korean media about how the USA's A-list flocked
to this exhibition and praised it?
From what some people say, we may have caused Seoul City much bigger
problems than we have ever imagined. Well, I do hope so.
Although the LA Exhibition has now opened, no-one in LA or California
has yet made a Google search for the word "hanok," and according to
both Google News, and Dow Jones' Factiva database, the word hanok has
not appeared in any US newspaper or magazine within the past seven
days. Of course, it is still early days, but not for the Korean media
who are already writing about the show or maybe just printing the
press releases.
Best
David
> >http://www.kahoidong.com/kh06012006.htmhttp://www.kahoidong.com/resto...
>
> > About Kahoi-Dong 31-96
>
> >http://www.kahoidong.com/undermining.htmlhttp://www.kahoidong.com/res...
The exclusion of the few large, old, famous hanoks in or near
kahoidong would indeed be an extraordinary omission if the purpose of
the exhibition were simply portray the unique nature of hanok
architecture, how this has evolved, and how it can be re-interpreted
using modern materials for modern times.
Extraordinary too not to trace the evolution of Kahoidong from the
homeland of the Yangban to that of the Seomin - an interesting chapter
of both social and architectural history. It would be strange also to
omit portraying how the newly built hanoks fitted into a landscape
populated with much older houses - especially since the relation
between a house and the landscape are important concepts for hanok
architecture.
When you consider the richness and the range of contemporary American
architecture - from individual houses to corporate skyscapers - and
the innovation in materials, tools, and techniques also in the USA,
how strange it would be to have a hanok exhibition that simply looks
at the style and appearance of the very very new. The major museums of
the USA, their patrons, and visitors are all quite sophisticated about
those aspects of other cultures that interest them. Those with some
interest in Asian cultures might even consider the hanok exhibit very
one-dimensional.
If this is what comes to pass, I think it might be worth asking what
is the real purpose of the exhibition? Who is the real audience? Is it
possible that the whole event is designed simply to be heralded in
Korean media as a triumph of culture and, in doing so, validate the
illegal way the new buildings have been constructed? Is this a PR
offensive to prepare the ground for Bukchon Plan No 2, when Seoul City
will execute the Final Solution to the Hanok Problem backed up by
rapturous reviews in Korean media about how the USA's A-list flocked
to this exhibition and praised it?
From what some people say, we may have caused Seoul City much bigger
problems than we have ever imagined. Well, I do hope so.
Although the LA Exhibition has now opened, no-one in LA or California
has yet made a Google search for the word "hanok," and according to
both Google News, and Dow Jones' Factiva database, the word hanok has
not appeared in any US newspaper or magazine within the past seven
days. Of course, it is still early days, but not for the Korean media
who are already writing about the show or maybe just printing the
press releases.
Best
David
>
> > About Kahoi-Dong 31-96
>
> >http://www.kahoidong.com/undermining.htmlhttp://www.kahoidong.com/res...
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