VIRTUAL: Livable Cities – New York

Abstract

As cities become de-industrialized and emphasize building a sustainable future, we have seen an increase in the design of large-scale landscapes that are being incorporated into the urban fabric. Unlike historical models of urban renewal which prioritized building and infrastructure as the drivers for change in the pursuit of creating a modern, industrial city, the prominence of landscape as the renewing and transformative medium illustrates the desire for a return to a more humanistic condition. The Cheonggyecheon stream and park in Seoul, South Korea, is an example of this phenomenon. The city of Seoul has promoted the project as a restoration of nature, history, and recreation of a collective memory of the site from its geomantic origins. The Cheonggyecheon was built on the site of a historic stream, following the demolition of a highway overpass and road that had covered the stream since the 1970s. The park has provided the city center with a green space, helped the city become more pedestrian-friendly, and contributed to the revitalization and rewriting of the city’s history and identity. This paper, adapted from my dissertation, will examine the Cheonggyecheon as simultaneously a recovery of and break with the past, illustrating the transformation of Seoul from a city that pursued rapid development into one that has constructed urban landscapes to reinforce a new identity of livability, sustainability and a new vision of progress.