Time to return to BOGNOR

A symbol of Bognor's dislocation with the sea can be seen by the state of the pier. The 'Bognor Birdman' is an annual human flying contest. Contestants try to fly off the end of the pier as far as possible. But in  recent years it has been cancelled due to insufficient water depth. It is time for Bognor to overcome these infrastructural issues.

Movement in X,Y and Z, a path...a promenade...

The maps below are quick studies into the character of the streets and paths that makeup the traditional low rise housing areas of Seoul. As a set they illustrate the informality and topography of these areas. It becomes clear when studying these layouts that the landscape and contours dictate. 

These drawings led me to explore the notion of a connecting path or promenade that follows and utilises the character of the landscape. The massive construction of the APT's create a terraced context with underground parking spaces and large retaining walls. As I have stated before these are my sites to test my strategy. I will upload images of the site in due course. I decided to draw the path in space and record the movement in three dimensions. This also led me to think about how the APT landscape can be used and experienced. The perspective view starts at 30m above the river on the footbridge on the road and falls through the complex, piercing apartment blocks on the way.

Movement in X,Y and Z have been represented in the sections and a plan. Little doors have been placed along the path that represent different thresholds. Yellow doors are where there is a transition from outside to inside. Grey doors, inside to outside and Black outside to underground.

Cityscape to Possible Sitescape

Traditional World of Little Doors 작은 문의 전통 세계

Little doors emphasize the small scale character of the traditional housing areas. The doors allow entrances and access to store rooms as they line the tight alleyways. I discovered a peculiar little door at Changdeok Palace, I peeled off the tour group and tried to find a quiet place to sit and sketch. My Peace was disrupted when the second tour group, ten strong and their guide gathered round behind me and watched me as I tentatively drew the little door. 

On a walk around Heukseok I documented a few of the little doors that lined my path. When you look for them they really are everywhere. They're position on facades are often bizarre, elevated or seemingly inaccessible. I have discovered that the average Korean is smaller than myself, but it seems that even these doors are small for them. Could they be special entrances to a world solely for the 5ft or less?

Traditional Fabric of the Seoul

These dense low rise areas once stretched across most of the city and formed a cityscape that was homogeneous as all the buildings use ornamented bricks. The houses pile up the hillsides and respond positively with the city's topography, offering views out across the city. These areas have the character of a  'conglomerate matrix' and they resemble south american shanty towns when seen from afar. The adhoc construction methods and lack of planning regulations means that new enclosures and additions create a rich fabric that is stitched together by a complex networks of alleyways and roads.

The drawing below shows the variety of form and brick constructions that create the rich fabric of the traditional housing areas. My concern is the intricate and spatially interesting areas are being demolished and replaced with identical impersonal apartment blocks. This profit driven situation is causing social and physical dislocations. Firstly the apartment blocks are not places where people want to stay for long periods of time, which restricts the formation of strong communities. Secondly the complexes of Apatu's form urban mountain ranges, which interrupt views and an understanding of the city's topography.