Building a Dynamic Void in the DMZ for Future North and South Korean Generations - Investigating the Construction of a Shared Educational Facility for Daeseong-dong and Gijeong-dong

남북 미래세대 교류 활성화를 위한 DMZ 내 가변적 보이드의 구축 - 대성동 초등학교와 기정동 소학교의 공동 교육 시설 건축에 대한 연구 -

This study presents a design proposal for linking two villages, Daeseong-dong and Gijeong-dong, in the DMZ on the Korean Peninsula. The proposal centers on a processual architecture grounded in sequential construction and deconstruction. As a strategic element, an elementary school for children is suggested, anticipating positive outcomes from civilian exchanges between the two Koreas. Preliminary research delves into Panmunjom and the Berlin Wall, serving as reference models for spatial and constructive strategies. Specific voids above the demarcation line, such as the military conference room, Checkpoint Charlie, and Friedrichstrasse station, are identified and integrated into the design. Programs and spaces fostering unity among the towns' residents dissolve the boundaries of black-and-white ideological realms, blending into the neutral gray space of the Neutralized DMZ. Rejecting the completeness of past constructions, the architecture here expands, contracts, and eventually disappears, adapting to varying circumstances over time. Essentially, architecture is proposed as a progressive organization of endlessly variable open configurations, processes, and endings, an ongoing living organism. The design proposal and DMZ research will undergo validation by experts related to the reunification of North and South Korea, assessing the necessity, orientation, and feasibility of this research.