This September will be a high watermark for South Korea’s meetings industry this year when 30,000 industry professionals come together for the UIA (International Union of Architects) 2017 Seoul World Architects Congress.
The major congress will use two of Seoul’s top event venues, with the main congress business taking place at Coex from 3-7 September, followed by the UIA General Assembly at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza (ddp) from 7-10 September.
Organisers said Seoul had been chosen as host city because it was “an accessible, affordable and adaptive city for foreign delegates”.
The UIA also mentioned the city’s UNESCO Creative City of Design designation, cultural heritage, and creative architecture development policies as key reasons for choosing Seoul.
Under the theme ‘Soul of City’, the congress will cover topics on how to revive the soul of a city through the five realms of architecture: namely culture, nature, future, passion, and human value.
The latest architectural innovations and technologies will be explored through a range of programmes, including forums, seminars, exhibitions, competitions, and activities geared towards architecture students who will have the opportunity to meet with today’s experts.
Seoul mayor Park Won-soon will address the topic of ‘Seoul, A Sharing City – Pursuing Democracy In Public Spaced Throughout The City’. Also scheduled is a look at the legacy of architect Zaha Hadid, whose design portfolio includes the ddp, one of Seoul’s most famous examples of modern architecture.
“Architecture is of great significance to us, as the only country still divided into two and bracing for reunification,” said congress president Jong Ruhl Han. “Sharing related architectural stories unique to Korea’s situation, and by making suggestions for further advancement, we hope that this congress can contribute to achieving the central goal of the UIA: further advancement of the human environment,” he added.
The Seoul event is being overseen by the UIA 2017 Seoul World Architects Congress Organising Committee, with financial support being provided by a range of public and private sponsors.
The UIA is the world’s largest association of professional architects, with around 1.3m members from 124 countries.
The UIA World Congress has been held every three years since 1948 and the 2017 edition marks the congress’s third outing in Asia.
