Hillsides and Alleys Ask What Lies Ahead for Busan Architecture as Korea Architecture Festival Kicks Off

Busan Pavilion Special Exhibition Sheds Light on the City's Terrain and Everyday Life

Busan Architecture Awards Exhibition and Architecture Film Festival Run Through October 30

Yoo Hyunjoon Lecture and Housing Forum Offer a New Perspective on the City...

An architecture festival showcasing how Busan's hillsides, alleys and coastline have shaped its architecture will be held at BEXCO.

Homes built along mountain slopes, stairways linking alleys and buildings facing the sea. Busan's terrain shaped the city's landscape, and that landscape gave rise to an architecture unique to Busan. The festival will explore how the city's conditions have influenced its architecture and the lives of its people.

Busan Metropolitan City, led by Mayor Jeon Jae-su, announced that the "2026 Korea Architecture Festival & Busan Architecture Planning Exhibition" will be held from October 27 to 31 at Hall 3A of BEXCO Exhibition Center 1.

This year's theme is "DA·YANG·CHE (MULTIPLICITY): A City of Inclusion and Resilience." The festival will examine how cities and architecture can move toward becoming sustainable places to live amid social change and the climate crisis.

At the heart of the exhibition is a special showcase featuring content from the Busan Pavilion at the International Union of Architects (UIA) World Congress of Architects. It will shed light on how the city took shape through its hillsides, coastline, alleys and stairways. Maps, topographic models, image collages and videos will illustrate Busan's urban structure and everyday scenes.

"17 Busan Architecture Selections" will showcase architectural solutions developed in response to the terrain and urban environment. Videos will also recreate the experience of walking along the hillsides and urban beaches, conveying the spatial characteristics of Busan. The exhibition will explore how the city's terrain has shaped architecture and everyday life, rather than serving merely as a backdrop.

The "2026 Busan Architecture Awards" ceremony will also take place on the opening day. The Gold Prize goes to Rotty Forest in Dongnae-gu, while the Silver Prize is awarded to Layered Monolith in Jung-gu and Mangmi Culture Share Center in Suyeong-gu.

The Architect of the Year Award went to Kang Daehwa, head of Total Architecture Office, and the Emerging Architect Award went to Lee Gicheol, head of Architect K Architecture Office. The winning projects will be presented through videos and models. During citizen tours, visitors can explore major buildings while hearing from their designers.

Lectures and forums on the future of cities will also be held. On October 28, architect Yoo Hyunjoon will give a lecture titled "Busan's Spaces and Future." On October 29, a forum titled "The Future of Apartment Housing in Busan's Aging Residential Areas" will discuss ways to improve residential environments, drawing on examples including aging neighborhoods along hillside roads in Busan and social housing in France.

The 57th Open Busan Urban Architecture Forum, to be held on October 30, will focus on "Housing in Busan: Collective Housing and the Role of the Public." Yoon Ili, head of Illi Architecture Office, will examine Busan's early apartments and policy relocation settlements from the perspective of housing history. Park Mikyung, head of Sanglim Architecture Office, will discuss how changes in apartments have affected housing and the urban landscape.

There will also be an event where audiences can experience architecture through film. The 6th Busan Architecture Film Festival will run from October 27 to 30 at the Busan Cinema Center's Small Theater. Across 12 screenings over four days, it will offer residents and architecture professionals the opportunity to see cities and spaces from a new perspective.

Kim Hyosuk, head of Busan Metropolitan City's Housing and Architecture Bureau, said, "I hope this will be an opportunity for architecture professionals and residents to discover together the value of Busan's urban spaces and architecture, and to consider the future of a sustainable city."

BEXCO

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