Fri 16 Sep 2022, Day 4/61. Fascinating visit to the Seoul Hall of Urbanism & Architecture, revealing how architects & planners have responded to the needs of Korean society. One example is last year’s exhibition ‘Our Happy Life: Architecture and Well-Being in the Age of Capitalism’.

This could be seen as reflecting a society infamous for its pressures to succeed in education & work and with a higher suicide rate than any other developed nation. I noticed a few new small spaces set aside for relaxation in the heart of Seoul and wondered if this was one response.

An older example is the way Korean architects, after the defeat of their Japanese occupiers, sought to replace buildings inspired by Japanese architecture with more authentically Korean buildings.