“Gyeongbokgung Station Returns to Citizens”… Restoring Gyeongbokgung Station’s Original Form as a Public Cultural Space

Scheduled to Restore Gyeongbokgung Station to Original Form by Removing Existing Metro Museum Facilities
Original Architecture Holds Great Value as a Building, Designated as 'Seoul Future Heritage'... Restoration Needed as a Cultural Space
Inconvenience Due to Restricted Access in Concourse During Metro Museum Exhibition Period
Restoration of Gyeongbokgung Station Expected to Preserve Cultural Value and Enhance Citizen Safety and Convenience

Gyeongbokgung Station will be restored to its original appearance from 1985.

Seoul Metro (President Baek Ho) announced that it plans to close the Metro Art Museum located in Gyeongbokgung Station and dismantle related facilities in order to preserve the value of Gyeongbokgung Station as a Seoul Future Heritage and return it to the citizens.

Accordingly, the Metro Art Museum was closed at the end of 2023, and its rental operations were also suspended.

Gyeongbokgung Station is a subway station designed by the late architect Kim Swoo-geun, highlighting the unique traditional beauty and architectural aesthetics through granite, themed on Seokjojeon. It is also a distinctive building with an art exhibition floor adjacent to the Seoul Museum of History.

The late architect Kim Swoo-geun, who designed Gyeongdong Church and the Seoul Olympic Main Stadium, is one of Korea’s representative architects, and Gyeongbokgung Station on Subway Line 3 is the only subway station he designed.

Recognizing its cultural value, the station, originally named Jungangcheong Station (now Gyeongbokgung Station) in 1985, received the Korea Architects Association Award. In 2018, it was also designated as a Seoul Future Heritage for its harmonious blend of traditional beauty and advanced construction techniques.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government designates modern heritage with preservation value as Future Heritage.

Through this restoration of Gyeongbokgung Station to its original form, Seoul Metro expects to preserve the inherent cultural value of the building designated as a Seoul Future Heritage.

Meanwhile, due to the operation of the Metro Art Museum at Gyeongbokgung Station, there were issues where passage through the concourse was not free during exhibition periods and detours were necessary. It is expected that such inconveniences will be naturally resolved through this restoration work.

During the Metro Art Museum exhibition periods, the museum was closed from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. the next day to prevent loss and damage of artworks, which restricted passage through the concourse.

In the future, Seoul Metro plans to create an open space by dismantling the Metro Art Museum facilities installed in the concourse (restoring the original form), allowing citizens to pass safely and conveniently without time restrictions. The restoration work is expected to be completed within the first half of the year.

Baek Ho, President of Seoul Metro, said, “We have restored Gyeongbokgung Station, which has great cultural preservation value, to its original form and returned it to the citizens through this opportunity. We expect that this restoration will re-highlight Gyeongbokgung Station as a Seoul Future Heritage and simultaneously enhance citizen safety and convenience.”