Constructed between 1967 and 1972, the Seun Arcade complex is a mixed-use megastructure in the heart of Seoul’s downtown Jongno district. Designed by a young Kim Swoo-geun, one of Korea’s greatest modern architects, it was an ambitious project that attempted - at least at the planning stage - to incorporate many of the innovative ideas of the era, such as Le Corbusier’s Unité d'habitation, the Team X movement and the Smithsons’ “streets in the sky.”
Sadly, many aspects of the original blueprint were disregarded during construction. Nevertheless, the mammoth complex was talk of the town when it was completed. Its residential spaces, quite modern for their time, attracted entertainers and other famous individuals. As a commercial space, its golden age was the late 1980s, when it was the center of Korea’s burgeoning electronics, PC and software trade. Prior to 1987, when Korea adopted stricter copyright laws, it was also home to many software pirates. The joke at the time was that Seun Arcade merchants could build even submarines or missiles when they got together.
In 1987, however, many of the arcade’s electronics merchants left for the newly created Yongsan Electronics Market. The development of the Gangnam district, the restoration of the Cheonggyecheon Stream and other factors further eroded the vitality of the market. By the early 2000s, the increasingly dilapidated complex was widely regarded as, at best, an eyesore, and at worst, an ugly symbol of the rash, dehumanizing overdevelopment pushed by Korea’s past military dictators.
In 2006, Seoul announced plans to demolish the complex and replace it with a park. Part of the arcade was torn down, but in 2014, the city changed its mind and decided to preserve and renovate what remained. Seoul is now pushing a revitalization project that sounds interesting but is already causing concerns over gentrification.
Anyway, Seun Arcade is a fun place to walk around, combining as it does hi-tech, retro-futuristic Brutalism and urban grit. It’s still home to many electronics shops, computer supply stores and repair shops (most of which are closed at night, FYI). It is also home to many lighting shops. I noticed a few young artists and designers have moved in, too. Lots of vintage electronics around, including arcade games. Surrounding the complex is a maze of claustrophobic alleyways … which I always enjoy, of course.
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