New sanctuary reinterprets classical Korean garden on Mount Nam

Seoul is expanding its downtown green footprint with a massive new park on Mount Nam designed to bring classical Korean gardening aesthetics into the modern era. The 30,000-square-meter development, set to open to the public Saturday, utilizes contemporary engineering — including thermal-filtering glass pavilions and transparent observation decks — to reinterpret the nature-first philosophy of traditional landscape design. City officials said Wednesday that they will officially open the Korea Forest Garden, a 30,000-square-meter sanctuary, within the Namsan Outdoor Botanical Garden. The site itself carries a narrative of urban reclamation: Once the site of residential housing, the land was razed and returned to nature in the 1990s, setting the stage for its latest transformation into a premier cultural park. The new layout features 11 distinct zones inspired by Damyang County’s Soswaewon and Myeongokheon — Joseon Dynasty gardens built by scholars seeking refuge from court politics. Those historic sites represent the peak of traditional Korean landscape architecture, which prizeWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times