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design politics: consumerization of post-industrial south korea hyun-joung (ryan) lee, university of michigan-ann arbor (2013) ABSTRACT In recent years, design has become a main theme in administration of Seoul, the capi- tal of South Korea. Under this theme of design, many projects have taken place, in- cluding a number of public constructions. While the purpose behind supporting “de- sign” as the symbol of Korea is to promote a new national image of post-developed nation, some of the Seoul government’s design projects yielded unintended side ef- fects. Tis paper analyzes the discrepancy between the professed rationale of these projects and the actual consequences through the case of Gwanghwamun and Dong- daemun, and suggests a possible direction for the future of design in Korean politics. DESIGN AND THE CITY OF SEOUL as the WDC of 2010. As part of the WDC launch, the n 2005, the International Council of Societies of city sponsored international events and created insti- Industrial Design (ICSID) announced an initiative tutions that could help implement various design-re- called World Design Capital (WDC) at a conven- lated projects in the capital. Te city’s active sponsor- Ition held in Copenhagen. According to the initiative’s ship of design-related events and institutions would architects, WDC was to be an opportunity for cities eventually pay further dividends, and Seoul was des- to present their innovative design accomplishments ignated the 2010 “City of Design” under the UNESCO and celebrate their successes in urban revitalization, Creative Cities Network, supplementing its earlier se- with a focus on the broader impact of design on ur- lection as WDC 2010.3 ban spaces, economies, and citizens. While recogniz- Taking advantage of growing publicity both at ing design’s role in making a space more habitable and home and abroad, Seoul’s government actively pro- efcient for its local residents, WDC also emphasized moted the image of Seoul as a sophisticated, cosmo- design as “an economic development tool” in a global politan center with ambitions to become “the hub of sense. Furthermore, WDC suggested design as some- global design.”4 When the promotion of this image thing that should foster a partnership between “de- gathered more attention, Oh Se-Hoon, the mayor of veloped countries and emerging economies”1. Tis Seoul from 2006 to 2011, adopted “Design Seoul” as statement revealed the ICSID’s understanding of the the new slogan for his administration. A savvy poli- status of design in the global time line of development. tician, Oh saw that design could be the point of dis- Design represented the importance of sof power, tinction for his administration, similar to the “Green moving away from the twentieth-century develop- Growth” (nokssaek seongjang) heralded by predeces- mental paradigm. sor, Lee Myung-Bak. Te metropolitan government As a nation that had for some time sought global then launched two large-scale public construction recognition of its status as a developed country rather projects that would become the hallmarks of the new than an emerging economy,2 South Korea pounced on Seoul: Gwanghwamun Plaza and Dongdaemun De- the opportunity ofered by the WDC initiative. Afer sign Plaza. the announcement in 2005, the metropolitan gov- One of the most historically rich sites in all of ernment of Seoul hurriedly put together a bid to be Korea—enduring from the Joseon Dynasty through selected as as a World Design Capital, a bid that was the years of Japanese colonial rule and American mili- ultimately successful when the ICSID selected Seoul tary occupation to authoritarian and post-authoritar- columbia university journal of politics & society ian eras –, the Gwanghwamun area of Seoul has long surrounding DDP thus interrogated the relationship been considered a spatial symbol of political power. between local history and global design. In turning this politically contested site into a sym- Tis thesis explores the eforts of Seoul to be- bol of “Design Seoul,” the Seoul Metropolitan Gov- come a city represented by the theme of design by ernment sought to create a space explicitly dedicated examining these two projects. What were the stated to cultural events and leisure activities. At the same objectives and rationales for each project? What con- time, the government revised an existing ordinance to testations and negotiations took place in the process prohibit political gatherings in the space, prompting of their construction, articulated by the state and vari- civic organizations to criticize the government’s vi- ous civil society groups? What were the consequences sion of the new Gwanghwamun Plaza as an attempt of their construction? In answering these questions, to disempower politically minded citizens.. Te pro- this thesis pays particular attention to the political cess leading up to the building of the Gwanghwamun implications of the active governmental promotion of Plaza raised an important question about the nature “design” as a tool for creating a new national, post- of citizens’ participation in a public space at the heart industrial image of South Korea. I have coined the of Seoul. While the metropolitan government defned term “design politics” to encapsulate these dynam- accessibility as the openness and availability of more ics. In addition to consulting political scientifc and leisure and cultural spaces to citizens, the citizens architectural literature, I incorporate interviews and foregrounded political participation as an integral contemporary media coverage of the construction part of what it means to have access to public space. projects in order to capture the voices of people, both Te tension between these two visions shaped the de- from producer and consumer perspectives. bate surrounding the success of the metropolitan gov- Te thesis will then conclude with a brief, pre- ernment’s urban renewal campaign. liminary discussion about a possible alternative to the If the question of citizens’ access became a point coupling of design and an image of post-industrial of contestation in the building of Gwanghwamun Pla- Korea. Tis alternative termed “social design,” places za, the question of history emerged as the lightening the emphasis on the agency of people within urban rod for concerns about the relationship between local design. If design politics focuses on the role of de- specifcity and “globality” in the building of the Dong- sign in representing national advancement for both daemun Design Plaza (DDP). Te Seoul metropolitan domestic and global consumption—paradoxically by government launched DDP as an ambitious global making design the banner for depoliticizing the pub- landmark, intended to symbolize Korea’s status as an lic and reconfguring them as passive consumers as we advanced, post-industrial nation. National achieve- will see in the section on Gwanghwamun Plaza—the ment was to be refected in the sophisticated and cos- concept of social design requires design to serve the mopolitan design of the plaza. Te landmark would needs of local people, increasing the habitability of the also serve as a tourist attraction, signaling a shif away space and the quality of life. from manufacturing industries and toward service in- dustries. A couple of years into the planning, however, DESIGN POLITICS: POST-INDUSTRIALISM AND historical remains from Joseon Dynasty were found THE NATIONAL IMAGE at the site. Te discovery resulted in the addition of Mayor Oh Se-hoon, mayor of Seoul between a “historical park” to the original design. Te city de- 2006 and 2011, proclaimed the twenty-frst century as clared that the purpose of the DDP was also to serve the century of design.5 Oh argued that because Korea as a memorial to the richness of Korean history and was no longer an impoverished country, and because culture, but to achieve the seemingly conficting goals most Koreans are now able to meet their basic needs, it of DDP as both a global landmark as well as a me- was time for Korea to join the global trend of expand- morial to Korean history, the blueprint of the DDP ing the paradigm of design from individual products had to be modifed considerably. Te resulting layout and businesses to one that also included government placed small history museums in the shadows of the policy.6 In his acceptance speech for Seoul’s appoint- main structure designed by a world-renowned archi- ment as the World Design Capital, Oh declared, “De- tect Zaha Hadid, an Iraqi-British architect known for sign is a growth driver of the Seoul economy. We have her abstract, futuristic designs. Te resulting debate surprised the world with the Miracle of the Han River 26 design politics: consumerization of post-industrial south korea and advancements in the IT sector. Now we would like in 2011.11 While manufacturing continues to be an to bring global attention to Seoul with strong design.”7 important sector of the Korean economy, Korea is rap- Oh’s speech reveals several conficting associa- idly moving toward service industries. Te move has tions with respect to the concept of design. On the one increased investment in high value-added industries hand, focusing on design is a challenge to break out as protections for cultural and intellectual property. from the developmental paradigm. Design is taken Design has similar potential to be such an industry. as an indicator of how far Korea has advanced since Just as food consumption evolved from sustenance to the days of the “Miracle of the Han.” During this era culinary art in wealthier societies, spending on enter- of developmental dictatorship under Presidents Park tainment and leisure activities has increased in devel- Chung-Hee and Chun Doo-Hwan, GDP per capita oped economies. Design belongs to the realm of in- in current U.S. dollars rose from $155.21 in 1960 to tellectual property with maximum value added.

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