sam ki explores geopolitics with fictional yen town concept

sam ki explores geopolitics with fictional yen town concept

‘yen town’ is a theoretical city located on the disputed senkaku islands in the east china sea. developed as the thesis of sam ki, the work speculates on the inhabitation of the islands and imagines a ‘twisted’ consumerism created by china’s contaminated landscape. in pursuit of better environments, ki foresees chinese elite escaping to the islets; a place of manufactured ‘purity’ that represents japan’s cleaner practices.

masterplan and cross-section of ‘yen town’
all images © sam ki

the project’s name, ‘yen town’, is influenced by 90s japanese film ‘swallowtaiil butterfly’ directed by shunji, iwai. a documentation of the struggle-filled lives of chinese immigrants in japan, cinematic settings are translated into the architectural masterplan. imagined factories and structures are responsible for the production of salt, oxygen, and smoke — ki’s elements of ‘purity’ — resulting in a unique landscape that examines to the geopolitical disparities between china and japan. 

re-imaginations of urban spaces, depicted in ‘swallowtail butterfly’ as fragments of paper tectonics

paper architecture transforms to adapt to the narrative of cultural conflicts, consumerism and identity 

salt manufacturing: pure salt canopy 

sunken japanese factory protected by canopy

section of washi factory and sake brewery using water-collection

oxygen manufacturing: snake-like planters in glass-bamboo structures generate fresh air

smoke (onsen) manufacturing: view from a private bathhouse

salt-street view with dining room section and mobile kitchen 

the white sea of purity, created through salt manufacturing processes

view of ‘yen town’ landscape

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions  feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: nick brink | designboom