A+U lab's korean memorial includes skywalk which invites visitors for a leisurely walk

yisabu — a general and politician of silla kingdom during the 6th century — is remembered for his voyage to usan-guk — present day ulleungdo and dokdo –, conquering the island nation off korea’s east coast. historically, samcheok with its strategic location, served a key role militarily including yisabu’s voyage to usan-guk which was launched from obon port in 512 AD. as such, the city serves as a symbolic location for the memorial of the general’s voyage, highlighting historical and cultural significance of the event. as well, the memorial proposed by A+U lab helps facilitate samcheok’s efforts to transform itself into a regional hub for cultural tourism, strengthening city’s competitiveness.

aerial view of the ‘yisobo dokdo memorial’

korean based practice A+U lab‘s design for ‘yisabu dokdo memorial’ imagines a place not only for the historical remembrance, but also as a destination for the local residents as well as visitors to spend a day in leisure — an open and inviting place for all. the plan envisions a place where a visitor would take a deliberate walk in a village filled with art and cultural experiences, on a skywalk alongside a picturesque mountain, in a memorial exhibition path imbued with leisurely activities, in a vast open park filled with the sun, in a sunken square hosting community events, and wonder through an information center equipped with amenities, making a visit to the ‘yisabu dokdo memorial’ a pleasant and educational experience.

approach view of the memorial

the design strategy creates two distinctive paths consisting of open-air structures. one contains the memorial exhibition program and the other contains places for the visitors to rest, play, nourish, learn and communicate. the movements of the paths converge and separate at multiple points in linear sequence, creating gradually changing architectural environment in which views, light, elevation and spatial depth are calibrated to create spaces suitable for the various activities

entrance view of the exhibition path

the sail is a pivoting stretched fabric screen designed to serve two purposes. first, the sail serves as a device for calibrating light and views — deflecting and filtering light to suit the exhibition spaces along the path, and directing the visitor’s view to various focal points surrounding A+U lab’s memorial park. second, the sail serves as a symbolic design element representing yisabu’s voyage to usan-guk. using teflon coated fiberglass fabric with internal metal frame and amber colored LED light, the sail provides iconic and contrasting imagery for the memorial park from morning to night.

approach view of the culture square and information center

with three main goals established at the beginning — physical regeneration, cultural regeneration and livelihood regeneration –, the proposal would inject a bottom-up approach to initiate a village renewal with active community involvement, introducing limited commercial, culture and arts uses built on storytelling of the local history linking the village with the project. the majority of the buildings in the village would be preserved through repair and improvement work as well as a limited number of new buildings constructed with injected art, culture and community facilities. with the newly introduced path that links the village with its surroundings, A+U lab’s design of ‘yisabu dokdo memorial’ adopts a comprehensive and proactive approach to the memorial design that aims to shape quality urban environment for the local residents.

memorial exhibition path

in addition to containing general information center functions, the center shares exhibition and experience spaces. these areas include the culture square — a multi-use public forum for the local residents and the city — providing additional venue for hosting events.

view from memorial park

concept diagram

memorial path diagram

path calibration diagram

arts and culture village

site plan

sections

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: apostolos costarangos | designboom