Features

Weiss/Manfredi
Taekwondo Park: Ascending Passages
Muju, Korea

Photo courtesy Weiss/Manfredi

Taekwondo Park will establish a dynamic gateway to the physical and philosophical world of Taekwondo, a Korean martial art and the national sport of South Korea, and become an athletic and cultural destination for 70 million practitioners from around the world.

Weiss/Manfredi’s design celebrates the history and culture of Korea, the principles of Taekwondo, and the site’s dramatic topography.

Nestled within the mountainous landscape, an arena, training center, and healing center anchor three distinct precincts that reflect the cultivation of body, mind, and spirit through Taekwondo. An ascending pathway links the three precincts with a sequence of bridges that evoke the passage from novice to Grand Master, from white belt to black belt, and from physical strength to spiritual ascendance.

Image courtesy Weiss/Manfredi
Body, Mind, and Spirit

Sketch courtesy Weiss/Manfredi
Ascending Passages

The three precincts accommodate a vast array of activities ranging from the spectacle of the arena to the serenity of the healing center retreat. The first precinct, the Body, resides at the lowest elevation of the site and includes the arrival plaza and arena.

Image courtesy Weiss/Manfredi

Sketch courtesy Weiss/Manfredi

The second precinct, the Mind, at the intermediate elevation, includes the research and training centers, which form an amphitheater of terraced buildings looking out over the open-air Taekwondo training and parade grounds.

Sketch courtesy Weiss/Manfredi

The third precinct, the Spirit, at the uppermost site elevation, includes the healing center, memorial park, water terraces, and an observation tower overlooking the entire site.

Sketch courtesy Weiss/Manfredi

Strengthening the connection of the three precincts, water descends through the valley in a series of water gardens that incorporate the narrative of scenic landscape elements unique to the region.

Image courtesy Weiss/Manfredi

Throughout the park, the distinction between building and site is blurred. Architecture, landscape, and water collaborate in a series of ascending terraces and bridges that preserve the topography of the site and establish a vital sustainable setting.

Framing places for events, art, recreation, and renewal, Taekwondo Park will become an international destination that celebrates the history and culture of Korea as well as the practice and principles of Taekwondo.

Sketch courtesy Weiss/Manfredi
Concept Sketch

Photo courtesy Weiss/Manfredi
Study Model

Client: Taekwondo Promotion Foundation
Architects: Weiss/Manfredi
Design Partners:
Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi
Project Manager: Rhett Russo
Core Team:
Patrick Armacost
Todd Hoehn
Justin Kwok
Lee Lim
Joseph Littrell
Andrew Ruggles
Yehre Suh
Austin Tragni
Presentation Team:
Cheryl Baxter
Alice Chai
Beth Eckels
Jocelyn Froimovich
Kim Nun
Lindsey Sherman
Michael Steiner
 
Architect's Local Representative:
Dongwoo Architects Co. Ltd.
Global Design Link
Jaewoo Lee, Principal
Seoul, Korea

Taekwondo Research Advisors:
Sung Chul Whang and Jun Chul Whang

Book
Taekwondo: The State of the Art
By Sung Chul Whang/Jun Chul Whang

Weiss/Manfredi arcspace features

November 24, 2008