Master of Cultural Heritage Restoration and Hanok Promotion, Shin Young-hoon, Passes Away

Hanok Advocate Promoting Traditional Architecture and Seeking Harmony with Modern Architecture
Dedicated Over 50 Years to Discovering Historical, Traditional, and Cultural Significance of Old Buildings

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Hanok craftsman Shin Young-hoon passed away on the 28th at the age of 86.

Shin had been battling declining health for about seven years, receiving care at his home and nursing facilities. He closed his eyes forever at 11:12 a.m. that day at Indeokwon, a specialized nursing home for the elderly in Jingwan-dong, Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul.

Shin was an advocate of traditional architecture who continuously pursued harmony with modern architecture. For over 50 years, he traveled across the country dedicating himself to discovering the history, tradition, and cultural significance of old buildings.

He was born in 1935 in Kaesong. When he was six, his father built a two-story hanok, and Shin is said to have first developed an interest in architecture by running errands carrying various tools. He left his hometown during the 1.4 Retreat. He attended Daejeon Comprehensive High School and then Seoul Jungang High School.

Shin began studying cultural heritage after attending a Korean art special lecture by Choi Sun-woo (1916?1984), who later served as the director of the National Museum. While working in the National Museum’s distribution department, he translated Japanese colonial-era artifact cards into Korean, which helped him develop insight into Korean art history.

In 1959, at the suggestion of archaeologist and art historian Im Cheon (1908?1965), Shin was entrusted with the restoration of national treasures and important cultural properties. Im was a master architect who led the repair and restoration of national-level cultural heritage. Im admired Shin’s eagerness to learn Korean traditions and brought him into the restoration work of the Dongjangdae at Suwon Fortress. Starting from this project, Shin participated in the dismantling and repair of Sungnyemun Gate and the creation of the main hall in front of Seokguram Grotto.

In 1962, Shin was appointed as a cultural heritage specialist and served as supervisor for numerous restoration and repair projects including Seokguram, Hwaeomsa Daeungjeon Hall, Ssangbongsa Daeungjeon Hall, and Jinju Fortress. He also contributed to the construction of buildings showcasing traditional architectural beauty overseas, such as the Baegaksan Room (Sarangbang) at the National Museum of Denmark, the Korean Pavilion in Chapultepec Park in Mexico, and the Goam Seobang (Lee Ungno Art Museum) in Paris.

In August 2000, he founded the Hanok Culture Center and served as its director until 2009. He offered various courses such as “Hanok Building Practice,” “Cultivating Apartments Like Hanok,” and “Modernization of Hanok,” helping people understand Korean residential culture. During his lifetime, Shin said, “When people think of hanok, they only imagine residential houses, but hanok is a concept that encompasses all places where Koreans live, including palaces, temples, and old houses that have been passed down from our ancestors.” He emphasized, “One must be able to read the behavioral patterns and ways of thinking embedded in those places.”

He was recognized for his remarkable contributions, receiving the Architecture Culture Person of the Year Award in 2008 and the Architectural History Society Academic Award last year. His publications include “Hanok and Its History,” “Historical Travel Series by Shin Young-hoon and Kim Dae-byeok,” “My Life with Architecture,” and “The Hometown of Hanok.”

He is survived by his wife Lee Sook-beom, sons Daeyong (representative of Vcts Malaysia) and Park Kyung-ri and his wife, daughter Jiyong (representative of Jiyong Hanok School and Hanok and Culture), sons Hoyong (director at SM Energy) and Lee Hyun-joo (public relations specialist at the National Museum of Korea) and his wife, and grandchildren Jaeho (director at VC BOOKS) and Hyewon (representative of Geulgoun Publishing). The funeral is being held at Seoul National University Hospital Funeral Hall 2nd floor, Room 4, Yeongeon-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, with the funeral procession scheduled for 7 a.m. on the 30th. The burial site is Memorial Park in Bundang, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.