Korea designates midcentury masterpieces, historic Gwangju theater as cultural heritage sites
Summary
The Korea Heritage Service will propose national heritage registration for four sites reflecting Korea’s industrial, architectural and wartime history. The sites are the former Yuyu Pharmaceutical factory in Anyang, Gwangju Theater, the former Daejeon Public Hall and Japanese military aircraft hangars at Altteureu Airfield on Jeju Island. The agency will collect public opinions for 30 days before seeking a final decision from the National Heritage Committee.
Key Facts
- The former Yuyu Pharmaceutical complex was built between 1958 and 1960 and includes a factory, research building and guardhouse designed by Kim Chung-up.
- Gwangju Theater opened in 1935 and its current building was reconstructed in 1968 after a fire, while retaining period architectural features.
- The former Daejeon Public Hall was built in 1937 and is described by the heritage agency as the only surviving Japanese colonial-era public hall outside the capital region.
- The Altteureu Airfield proposal would rename an existing registered heritage site and add eight concrete hangars to the 10 already registered structures.
- The hangars were built around 1937 and preserve evidence of Japan’s wartime military infrastructure and plans to use Jeju as a launch base for military operations.
The former Daejeon Public Hall / Courtesy of Korea Heritage Service
Four sites reflecting Korea’s industrial, architectural and wartime history have been proposed for national heritage registration, including a factory designed by one of the country’s most influential modern architects and a cinema that has served audiences for more than nine decades.
The Korea Heritage Service said Monday that it will propose national registration for the former Yuyu Pharmaceutical factory in Anyang, Gwangju Theater, the former Daejeon Public Hall and Japanese military aircraft hangars at Altteureu Airfield in Moseulpo, Jeju Island.
The former Yuyu Pharmaceutical complex, built between 1958 and 1960, comprises a factory, research building and guardhouse designed by Kim Chung-up, a leading figure in modern Korean architecture.
The complex is recognized for its historical role in the pharmaceutical industry and architectural features that reflect Kim’s early work, including distinctive columns, projecting window frames and a cylindrical guardhouse.
Gwangju Theater, which opened in 1935 under an organization established with Korean capital during Japanese colonial rule, remains a rare surviving single-screen cinema and continues to serve as a cultural venue for local residents.
Its current building was reconstructed in 1968 after a fire, retaining architectural features that offer insight into regional theater design of the period.
The former Daejeon Public Hall, built in 1937 as a public assembly hall and Chungnam Industrial Promotion Hall, is the only surviving Japanese colonial-era public hall outside the capital region, according to the heritage agency.
The building also illustrates the spread of reinforced-concrete construction and modernist architectural influences during the 1930s.
The proposal for Jeju’s Altteureu Airfield hangars would rename an existing registered heritage site and add eight structures to the 10 already registered.
Built around 1937, the concrete hangars preserve evidence of Japan’s wartime military infrastructure and plans to use Jeju as a launch base for military operations.
The agency will collect public opinions for 30 days before seeking a final decision from the National Heritage Committee.
This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.
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