Environmental Award Winner... Gangdong-type KEPCO Overhead Equipment Screen Design Receives High Praise... Collaboration with Designers with Developmental Disabilities... Scheduled for Application to 29 Units on Cheonho Rodeo Street in 2024
Gangdong-gu (Mayor Lee Su-hee) announced on the 28th that it received the grand prize at the '2023 Good Design Award' held in the United States.
The 'Good Design Award' is the world's oldest design competition, started in the United States in 1950 and now in its 73rd year. Hosted by the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design and the European Centre for Architecture, Art, Design and Urban Studies, it annually selects winners in various categories such as electronics, transportation, furniture, and computers.
This time, Gangdong-gu won the grand prize in the environmental category. The award was given for designing a cover for the commonly seen 'Han-jeon Jisang Gigi' (KEPCO ground equipment) on the streets. The artwork was a collaboration between a designer with developmental disabilities and a non-disabled designer from Kimu Studio*, adding an emotional and meaningful story, which received high praise.
In fact, the 'Han-jeon Jisang Gigi' was one of the urban facilities that often had illegal advertisements attached or were left unattended, detracting from the cityscape. To solve this problem, a cover-type structure that can wrap around the KEPCO ground equipment was developed in-house by integrating designer works into an urban gallery-style cover.
In particular, the design allows easy opening and closing considering electrical facility maintenance, and the structure was designed to be ventilated to account for heat generation. Additionally, mesh was installed to prevent garbage dumping, taking maintenance aspects into consideration.
Lee Su-hee, Mayor of Gangdong-gu, stated, "We will improve the design of public facilities in daily life to enhance the quality of the urban landscape," and added, "Furthermore, we will create a dignified city that residents can take pride in."
Kimu Studio*, which collaborated with the district this time, is a social venture company based in Korea that discovers and educates artists with developmental disabilities who have talent in art, supporting their growth into professional artists.
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