SPACE September 2023 (No. 670)
Declining populations and the consequent disappearance of provinces: you may be indifferent to small and medium-sized (hereinafter mid-size) cities or think you know them well because you’ve heard these two expressions so often. Traditional markets dominated by foreign stores and urban structures adopting American car-centred styles are somehow different from the image of mid-size cities that most people have in mind. What kind of changes have mid-size cities been subject to, and can we use this force of change as a turning point in their evolution rather than thinking of it as a crisis of identity? In response, the Mid-Size City Forum offered an alternative perspective from within the fields of architecture and urbanism and presented visions of hope rather than frustration.
View of the vegetable garden using new housing plots in Sangju
interview
Lee Janghwan, Lee Sanghyun co-principals, Mid-Size City Forum × Han Garam
Han Garam: The Mid-Size City Forum is a research meeting for advocates of mid- size cities, but it is run by two people who are based in large cities. What prompted you two to focus on mid-size cities and how did you come to work together?
Lee Sanghyun: When I reflected on the forum’s beginnings after receiving the request for this interview, I realised that it was two summers ago. Before that, we knew each other as alumni of Delft University of Technology, where I studied urbanism and Lee Janghwan studied architecture. After completing my studies, I worked for the Daegu Metropolitan City Urban Design Division. When settling down, over the past decade or so, I became personally invested in researching the architecture and urbanism of Daegu. This was related to my work, but it also provided an opportunityto improve my understanding of the city as I had no prior connections to Daegu. Thecity was not small or medium sized, but I’ve always been interested in provincial cities.
Lee Janghwan: I have been researching architecture and urbanism in Seoul since 2017. As a result of this research, I oversaw the exhibitions at Seoul Hall of Urbanism & Architecture. However, the more I studied Seoul, the more curious I became about the rest of the country. I thought that the continuous transformation of the metropolitan area through population inflow would mean that the outflow of people from the other parts would bring about another kind of change. However, the area outside the metropolitan area was too large to research by myself, and the data of the area was not as rich as that found in Seoul. While I was looking to collaborate with another researcher, I met Lee Sanghyun.Han Garam: How did you overcome these difficulties in data collection and the aspect of time and space you mentioned?
Lee Janghwan: It may not be very systematic, but research consists of a kind of three stages. The first is workshops to collect data. We try to collect data on mid-size cities by conducting workshops with universities and academic societies, observing a city with the participants and reconstructing the data. The second stage is a seminar that encourages public discussion, so that we can hear and collate stories from different perspectives and expand the scope of our knowledge. We invite architects, urban planners, and humanities scholars who are interested in mid-size cities in Korea to share their opinions. The last stage is related to projects, where we experiment with alternative ideas using mid-size cities as the design issue or brief when we run a studio in schools.
Han Garam: Until now, those in the architectural and urban associations and academic institutions have mainly discussed issues facing the provinces. The Mid-Size City Forum seems to be different from the existing methodology and approach in that it is led by individuals.
Lee Sanghyun: In general, associationsand academia only deal with quantitativeor formal aspects of mid-size cities, and the research is divided between architecture and urbanism respectively. On the other hand, since we are individuals, we can freely deal in a more informal manner and as we have expertise in both architecture and urbanism, the subjects can cover both fields, from the national level to informal buildings. I think this aspect underscores the significance of the Mid-Size City Forum. Most of all, research organisations and associations usually do not have autonomy in setting agendas because they carry out most of their research as part of funded projects, and research topics are limited to what is immediately required within a current paradigm. We want to create new discourses outside of the current framework by tracking macro stories of architecture and urbanism or tracing how things are changing.
Han Garam: How do you choose topics? Also, since the scope of mid-size cities is set differently by scholars and recent studies, how do you define them and what criteria do you use to select cities to research within this scope?
Lee Janghwan: We examined legal and academic criteria for defining mid-size cities, but we decided that they didn’t mean much to us. As the population of mid-size cities is constantly changing, we decided to focus on the singularities that arise as a condition of change and select cities that meet them rather than sticking to the established criteria. For example, what are the consequences of globalisation and population aging for mid-size cities, or how have innovations in transportation systems such as high-speed rail and highways at the national level affected them? Even underone topic, we want to observe the conditions and changing status by forming comparisons and performing analyses of various cities.
Diagram of the urban expansion by the time (production: Lim Soojin, Kim Minjeong, Lim Songbin)
Han Garam: Before we get into the specific characteristics of mid-size cities, what are their observable universal trends? What are the consequences of past urban expansion and ongoing population decline?
Lee Janghwan: People who are not familiar with the current situation in mid-size cities seem to possess a certain nostalgic attitude towards the provinces, though the reality is different. (laugh) Until the 1980s, mid-size cities had small city centres, often concentrated with government offices, schools, bus terminals, markets, which made the main streets lively. However, since the 1990s, new residential development projects began in earnest. Apartment complexes were built in a new city centre, and government offices and bus terminals were relocated. Younger consumers follow this movement, creating a new commercial centre. The expanded area is larger than the original city centre. However, the populations have also been declining over the past 20 years. As people are scattered throughout the sprawling city, the concentration of people has decreased, and it is difficult to expect the same vitality as the past. The public transportation system has also lost its function. City buses had to run more routes as the city expanded, but as the population shrank, the number of trips was reduced to meet the budget. As a result, mid-size cities are becoming more like American car-centred cities where cars are essential.
Han Garam: In some cities, the percentage of foreigners is said to increase in spite of a decline in the overall population.
Lee Sanghyun: Can you imagine a mid-size city with signage in a strange foreign language in traditional markets, where old locals and young foreigners coexist? (laugh) There are mid-size cities where are experiencing transnational phenomena even though they are supposed to be conservative and traditional. This is due to the intersection of economic reasons: first, low rents and labour costs attract industrial complexes of small contractors and foreign workers, followed by restaurants, grocery stores, and shops such as currency exchanges to cater to them, creating an ecosystem of ‘global mid-size cities’. Gimhae is one of the extreme cases. The original city centre of Gimhae, located near archaeological sites such as the Tomb of King Suro, is supposed to have something to do with history of Gaya Kingdom, but instead, it is a foreigner’s town. Even most of the traditional market right next to Tomb of King Suro is almost occupied by shops for foreigners. There is no room for Koreans.
Diagram of the facility for foreigner in Gimhae.
Near archaeological sites and traditional market is almost occupied by facilities for foreigners. The percentage of multicultural students in elementary schools is 47.3% (Hapseong Elementary School) and 35.2% (Dongkwang Elementary School ).
Han Garam: Meanwhile, the theme of last summer’s workshop was ‘perforated urban block’, which is related to vacant lots. Last year I visited two plots for new housing projects in Sangju and Namwon. The plots featured a new building of three to five stories, and both plots were adjacent to vegetable gardens of the similar size to the plot on both sides. In fact, this demonstrated the development loopholes for mid-size cities.Lee Janghwan: I was also surprised to see the situation in Sangju, and, later, when I observed new housing plots in other mid-size cities through aerial maps, they usually followed a similar approach. New housing plots have been developed, but due to the declining population and lack of need for development, no buildings have been built. The residents are now using the empty site as farmingland instead of leaving it idle. The result is a unique landscape of mid-scale buildings of five stories neighbouring arable land.
Compared to a few decades ago, the demographics are changing, but the development methods haven’t changed. This contradiction is partly the resultof local politics, but there is also anerror in the planned population which justifies development. This is because the future population of each mid-size city is unconditionally estimated as tending upwards. Once this decision is made, all urban planning is based upon it. It doesn’t make sense. Even from our generation’s perspective, we need to recognise the reality of a shrinking population and make plans and strategies for that set of conditions.Han Garam: In the original city centre, land is said to have been vacated for other reasons.
Lee Janghwan: The original city centres of mid-size cities with their long histories were formed before the establishment of modern building codes. They were built when there was no concept of cars and roads, and plots in the place are connected by alleys. Since the modern age, roads were built along the outer part of the block, followed by new buildings of three to five stories. However, the inner part of the block still has no roads for vehicle access, so it is impossible to expand or build new buildings. Therefore, it naturally remains in the same state as before, and, when the owner dies, it goes through a series of processes: the vacant house, demolition, and usage as parking lot. The process creates perforations in the city.
Han Garam: You’ve also proposed your ‘Erasing Plan’ that draws upon this perforation phenomenon.
Lee Janghwan: We ran a simulation ofurban perforation in the original citycentre of Namwon. We mapped the age group of landowners and found that it was predominantly people in their 60s and 70s. At this rate, if nothing is done and they all die a natural death in 20 to 30 years, the existing block form will be almost completely dissolved, and the urban structure will be disorganised. Society usually regards this decline as a crisis, but we don’t see it from a negative perspective. If we can slightly redirect the declining forces, it can provide an opportunity to create a new order in the city.
Therefore, Erasing Plan is a strategy for ‘sensitive removal’, and, unlike a master plan which is established based on one goal, the process is important here. The city grows through the process of transforming the interior of the block into a productive green area as perforation is occurring, and backfilling partially to define the boundary of the block when the street-side buildings are gone. In this way, we can envision a ‘medium-density urban- rural city’, where mid-sized buildings along the roadside meet productive green area inside the blocks. This is not a fiction, but something that is happening now, like in Sangju.
Lee Sanghyun: Erasing Plan is related to urban planning, but there must be areas in which architects should show more of interest. Urban planning can decide place to prioritise demolition, but dealing with the back of a building facing a vacant lot or judging and intervening in how to change an existing building belongs to a set of considerations that architecture is equipped to address. When a city is devised from a collection of parts in response to its time, architects who can see the whole should participate in the process.
Diagram of the Erasing Plan (production: Shin Yoogyeong)
Han Garam: Let’s talk about more physical architecture. There is a lot of architecture without architects in private houses in mid- size cities. Please explain how the Mid-Size City Forum interprets this situation.
Lee Sanghyun: In provinces, there are many structures added to existing buildings. Since they are usually illegal, they are considered as the subject of demolition, not of research. Rather than getting stuck in the frame of ‘illegal construction’, we wanted to find new possibilities by redefining ‘informal architecture’ and ‘ad-hoc architecture’. Ad-hoc architectures are often associated with rain (waterproofing), but they are also transformed, considering weather, temperature, production conditions, and lifestyles. In the second workshop, we visualised and analysed this; what is added to an existing building, how it is creating new space, how rainwater is treated and in what quantities, and how much solar heat is blocked by the additions. Interestingly, this analysis can also be linked to Erasing Plan. When the interior of a block is turned into a garden or vacated, the first building to react is not the new construction, but the additions. For example, pipes could be attached to roof to collect rainwater to irrigate vegetable gardens. There is tremendous potential for this type of building to be applied in mid-size cities today and in the future, particularlyin connection with sustainability aims.
Lee Janghwan: From an architect’s perspective, we wanted to be wary of replacing ad-hoc architecture with a single style or architectural language. Instead, we try to understand why it is inevitable and prevalent, and what it means architecturally. First, ad-hoc architecture occurs in mid-size cities because the logic of demolition and new construction in large cities does not work. Also, elderly users only need their homes to last for their lifetime, so they complement existing performance by adding on. Therefore, crude, lightweight, and disposable materials are used. Because this is prevalent, it creates a kind of urban order, and if architects understand this phenomenon, they can come up with ideas for creating new kinds of contexts in mid-size cities.
If ad-hoc architecture is examined on a spatial level, we should pay attention to the in-between spaces created by improvised additions to existing buildings. While big cities create a division between an artificial inside and the non-artificial by separating the inside from outside as much as possible, in the provinces, the enclosed interior is minimised due to add-on architecture, while many layers pile up between the exteriors. The result is not only more interaction with nature, but also more possibilities to use the space for various purposes. The spaces between them increase in the southern province, and in certain areas, such as Sangju, they are even used as a place to dry persimmons. This may be due to the different architectural foundations. When we analysed the buildings in their existing state, we found that there are certain types of buildings that are easier to add to. They feature restrooms and warehouses integrated into the wall and located outside, and narrow distance between a building and wall. Also, they have stairs to the roof outside of the building, and the stair landing is placed on the roof of restroom or warehouse outside.Han Garam: Lastly, why should architecture and urbanism pay more attention to mid-size cities? What should be different from the way we viewed the provinces in the past?
Lee Janghwan: In our society, the current situation of mid-size cities is often characterised by keywords such as ‘declining population’ and ‘disappearance of provinces’, but few people talk about the details ofhow the urban structure is changing. I think this discourse shouldn’t be led by just sociologists and statisticians, but it is an important time for architects to investigate mid- size cities from the perspective of architects, accumulate data, and speak out. Understanding the world is what drives us to redefine architecture and present alternative visions.
In Korea, in the past, architects paid attention to mid-size cities. Seoul School of Architecture (SA) organised summer workshops in different regions and themes for over a decade from the late 1990s. At that time, architects wanted to locate a sense of Koreanness in mid-size cities, but the situation has changed completely now. The time has come to explore what architecture can do in the wake of the disappearance of cities.
Lee Sanghyun: The shrinking city is not a special trend in Korea. It is a global phenomenonand has historical links. Do you know that the Nolli Map is related to shrinking city of Rome? (laugh) Architects often zoom in only some city centres to emphasise the shape and relationship between public and private spaces, but this map covers a much larger area. Particularly in our decaying suburbs, traces of large structures such as ancient Roman public baths can be found while crops were cultivated there. The boundary between buildings and nature gradually becomes blurred and they are merged. I think it is the same situation today in Korea. We want to raise the profile of this topic in the world of architecture and urbanism, not only in Korea but to also extend the discussion to contacts abroad if possible.
View of ad-hoc architecture.
Mid-Size City Forum uses the term ‘ad-hoc architecture’ rather than ‘illegal construction’.
Diagram of the ad-hoc architecture in Sangju (production: Kim Minjeong, Kim Youbin)
You can see more information on the SPACE No. 670 (September 2023).
Lee Janghwan
Lee Janghwan is a principal at Urban Operations, working on urban, cultural, and architectural issues, and an adjunct professor at Hongik University and Hanyang University. He graduated from Hongik University and Seoul School of Architecture (SA), and graduated with honours from the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands. He worked at the OMA (Office for Metropolitan Architecture) in Rotterdam, the Netherlands and designed the Qatar National Library, as well as numerous projects throughout Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Focusing on Seoul’s infrastructure, he oversaw ‘AN-OTHER SEOUL’ (2019) and ‘VOID IN THE CITY’ (2022) at Seoul Hall of Urbanism & Architecture.
Lee Sanghyun
Lee Sanghyun is working at the Daegu Metropolitan City Urban Design Division and is an independent urban researcher. He received his master’s degree from department of urban planning and engineering of Hanyang University and Delft University of Technology (urbanism track), respectively, and later worked as an urban designer at Palmbout Urban Landscapes in the Netherlands. Currently, he is researching mid-size cities, and working on the Urban DNA of Daegu project researched in Daegu.
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