[Asia Exclusive] "The Presidential Office's Direct National Architecture Policy Committee Must Be Preserved"

Chairman Seok Emphasizes Importance of Policy Coordination

Seok Jeonghun, President of the Korea Institute of Registered Architects, is being interviewed on the 29th at the Korea Institute of Registered Architects building in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Seoyul] Seok Jeong-hoon, President of the Korea Institute of Registered Architects, stated that for K-Architecture, "the Presidential National Architecture Policy Committee (hereinafter referred to as the NAPC), which deliberates important policies in the field of architecture and coordinates architectural policies among related ministries, must be preserved."

In a recent interview held at the Korea Institute of Registered Architects in Seocho-gu, Seoul, President Seok said, "The existence of the NAPC is important to expand opportunities for the public to enjoy architectural culture and to enhance the role of architects in the formulation of various national policies and during disasters and other safety incidents."

The NAPC exists to integrally promote cross-ministerial architectural policies by coordinating architectural policies among related ministries and was established under the Framework Act on Architecture. Since 2009, the NAPC has coordinated major policies in the architectural field dispersed across various ministries, in addition to reporting regularly to the National Assembly and the President, but it is currently negotiating a transfer to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

President Seok said, "National architectural policies are related to many social issues such as people's lives and real estate problems," adding, "The committee's significance lies in creating opinions on these matters and viewing them from new perspectives, but if the affiliation is transferred to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, its role will be diminished."

Seok Jeonghun, President of the Korea Institute of Registered Architects, is being interviewed on the 29th at the Korea Institute of Registered Architects building in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

He also pointed out the current situation where architects are not properly presenting the social role of architecture. President Seok said, "Architecture has the greatest impact on national prestige, but there is little interest from both the industry and the government." He added, "Although there are famous buildings in our country, it is difficult to find those designed by Korean architects," and continued, "While K-Food, K-Culture, and other fields are leading the world, architecture is far from that." He further noted, "Unlike other countries, when looking down from tall buildings here, all you see are uniform apartment buildings."

President Seok cited his experience visiting Bangladesh in 2019 as an example. He said, "Bangladesh has the National Parliament Building designed by the world-renowned architect Louis Kahn in 1965," and added, "Considering the cultural level required to invite a world-class architect and build such a building, I felt that our country still views buildings only from a real estate perspective." He then stated, "If we fail to break away from viewing architecture solely from an economic perspective, it will take a long time before the Pritzker Prize, known as the Nobel Prize of architecture, is awarded to someone from our country."

President Seok believes that the continuation of the NAPC can raise interest in architecture and propose new alternatives to real estate issues. He said, "It is important to correct the role of the NAPC and strengthen its functions by utilizing the architectural data and professional knowledge possessed by the Korea Institute of Registered Architects."

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