Seoul Agropolis
| Location: | Seoul, Korea |
|---|---|
| Status: | Study submitted |
| Date: | 2021 |
Towards a Continuously Productive City
Access to cultivable urban land is a rare commodity, as a result productive landscapes are taking over our streets, roofs, walls and undergrounds. These productive urban landscapes can have an impact on people that goes far beyond sustenance, from the creation of new economic opportunities, to the forging of social bonds and the rediscovery of one’s natural and cultural setting. A new type of city is emerging, one where every space and surface can have a different productive potential. In this new continuously productive city (an “agropolis”), production should only be seen as one part of a closed loop that also includes consumption and disposal / decomposition.
The Seoul Agropolis will channel Mongok’s agricultural past to create new paradigms that bring together traditional farming methods and high-tech means for agroecological urban production, both above ground, below ground and within buildings. The Seoul Agropolis will be a space for public exhibition and engagement, research and education, and economic growth, all centered on urban farming and sustainable living.
To illustrate the diverse potential of this agropolis, we looked back to Patrick Geddes’ 1909 paradigm-changing “Valley Section”, which depicted every part of the landscape as having a different productive role and value. In each landscape a culture and an economy developed from that value. We believe it’s time to create a new urban “Valley Section” that imbues every urban space, every urban surface with productive meaning and value. From farming for sustenance, health and livelihood, supporting pollinators to harvesting water and energy. This new urban valley section will be designed to close the loop from production to consumption and waste to reuse, creating recreational and commercial opportunities and bringing communities together at every step of the process.
The agropolis functions similarly to an urban “Valley Section” with different locations on the site most appropriate (due to a host of different factors) for different types of activities and productive landscapes.
The placement and form of the building is defined by its program and its relationship to its context.
The agropolis is located in an optimal location to forge meaningful relationships with organizations like the Seoul Arboretum, universities, and community groups.
The site is designed as a flexible framework, with fluidity in mind. The building’s armature provides vertical circulation through a series of smaller cores, and depending on how the building is used, the spaces are able to transform, expanding and contracting as needed.
