• Journal of architectural history
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.19-30
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• 2019

The former administration office building of Kyeong-seong-bu(京城府) was a building converted from the Japanese residency-general's of Kyeong-seong(京城理事廳) which was originally built as the Japanese consulate in Joseon(日本領事館). It was too worn and too small as a Kyeong-seong-bu administration office even with several annexes. Kyeong-seong-bu tried to build a new big administration office building at the vacant north side of the same site, which was closely faced to the rotary in front of the Bank of Joseon(朝鮮銀行前廣場). But this trial was ended in vain due to insufficient budget. Therefore Kyeong-seong-bu built a new administration office building in another site and moved to it in 1926 with debts. For paying for the debts Kyeong-seong-bu sold the former site after partitioning with new roads through it. As a result the nature of the former site and its surroundings was changed. This study traces the changes and inquires how the authorities in the colonial Joseon and various commercial powers of Kyeong-seong-bu behaved for their own interests in the meantime. It makes use of the historical records and documentary literatures between early 1910s and early 1930s.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.11-22
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• 2017

A plaza represents the identity of a city, and that reveals a plaza's importance. Gwanghwamun Plaza and Seoul Plaza are two representative plazas where the citizens can freely express their opinions. Many major plazas in the center of Seoul were built under the Japanese occupation. Among these, the plaza of Joseon Bank has different characteristics than Gwanghwamun Plaza and Seoul Plaza. Even though this plaza was built in the center of the commercial, administrational, and cultural district during the Japanese colonial period, the research on this plaza has been limited. This study was conducted to verify the features of this plaza by analyzing its construction and transformation during the Japanese colonial period. The study's results outline how the plaza was constructed by the Japanese administration. The intention of the government is shown by the fact that it purchased land parcels and held a design competition. In the 1910s, the government purchased seven parcels of land during the expansion of roads as the place for the plaza. During the late 1930s, the government accepted a traffic circle to regulate the traffic and eliminate the conflict between crossing movements. In 1939, a fountain was built in the plaza's center, and its design was selected through a design competition. It was planned as a square, but gradually turned into a rotary. Furthermore, the plaza was a landmark and symbol of the power and modernity of Japan. As the main modal point of public transportation, the plaza became surrounded with largescale Western-style buildings, commercial advertising, and neon signs. The plaza became a place where people could experience the modern city. These spectacular displays showed that Japanese imperialism was perceived as a strange and peculiar landscape to the majority of Korean citizens. This study investigates the history and characteristics of the plaza, focusing on its beginning as well as the transformation of its form. As to the limitations of the study, it does not consider political and economic contexts within the transformation of Seoul and in relation to this plaza. Instead, that research remains for a future study.