Sammu Incineration Plant Transforms into Gwangju's Representative Cultural Facility

Gwangju City Selects Director Kim Gyurang as Chief Planner for Cultural Regeneration Project

Kyu-rang Kim, Chief Planner

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Gwangju Sangmu Incineration Plant is being transformed into Gwangju's representative complex cultural space.

Gwangju Metropolitan City announced on the 14th that it has selected director Kim Gyu-rang as the general planner to successfully promote the Sangmu Incineration Plant cultural regeneration project.

General planner Kim Gyu-rang is a cultural planning expert who has accumulated diverse experience in culture, arts, festivals, and tourism in the region. He has demonstrated planning and directing skills as the general director in major events such as the 2019 World Swimming Championships Gwangju City Tour 'Tasho', the 100th anniversary ceremony of the March 1st Movement, the May 18th Eve Festival, the Jeollado Visit Year proclamation ceremony, and the Gwangju Citizen Festival 'Saram'.

He also contributed to revitalizing urban spaces through events like Good Morning Yangnim, Mudeung Ulim, and Art Picnic. Recognized for his planning skills in public cultural and artistic fields as a programmer for the Gwangju Biennale and curator for the Design Biennale, he is currently actively working as a member of the Gwangju Festival Promotion, Craft, and Tourism Activation Committees.

As the general director of the Sangmu Incineration Plant cultural regeneration project, Kim Gyu-rang will oversee all aspects of the project until completion, including space composition planning, preparation of architectural design competition guidelines, overall coordination of remodeling construction, selection of operating entities, setting operational directions, and conceptualizing operational programs.

In addition, last month, Gwangju selected the LG HelloVision consortium as the service company to operate a pilot program aimed at preemptively reviewing operational issues after the completion of the incineration plant cultural regeneration project.

This year, after experimenting with various space utilization methods and analyzing their pros and cons, the results will be reflected in the remodeling design guidelines for the incineration plant. Starting with the design service next year, the cultural regeneration project will be actively promoted.

The Sangmu Incineration Plant cultural regeneration project is being promoted as part of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's cultural regeneration project for idle spaces in closed industrial facilities. A total project cost of 45 billion KRW (22.5 billion KRW from the national government and 22.5 billion KRW from the city) will be invested by 2024 to create an exhibition and experience space that combines industrial technology and art, as well as a complex space where civil society can communicate, share, and collaborate, returning it to the citizens.

Kim Young-geun, head of the city's Cultural Infrastructure Division, said, "With the selection of a general planner who has outstanding passion for the incineration plant cultural regeneration and the start of the pilot program operation, a system has been established to rebirth the Sangmu Incineration Plant as Gwangju's representative cultural infrastructure." He added, "We will do our best to pass the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's investment review, the final hurdle for securing national funding."