|
|
|
By Kim Rahn The design of a skyscraper to be built in central Seoul is drawing international media backlash due to the alleged similarity to the New York World Trade Center (WTC) towers exploding on Sept. 11, 2001. Not only those who lost their beloved ones in the terrorist attack in 2001 but also others are denouncing the design which a Dutch architectural firm recently disclosed for luxury residential towers at Yongsan International Business District, according to New York Daily News and other international dailies. But the firm, MVRDV, said it neither noticed the resemblance, nor intended it. According to the blueprint, a 300-meter-high apartment building and another 260-meter-high one are connected in the middle by a passage named a “pixelated cloud.” The cloud-shaped passage was designed to accommodate sky lounges, restaurants and other community facilities such as swimming pools and fitness centers. The district developer plans to decide the final design plans by March. But critics claim the “cloud” resembles the shower of debris that erupted from the WTC twin towers after the plane strikes. “I think it’s a total lie and they have no respect for the people who died that day. They’re crossing a line. It looks like the towers imploding. I think they’re trying to sensationalize it. It’s a cheap way to get publicity,” Jim Riches, a former New York City Fire Department (FDNY) deputy chief who lost his son in the terrorist attack, was quoted as saying by the newspaper. Regarding the row, MBRDV expressed regret on its website over any connotation the design evokes. “It was not our intention to create an image resembling the attacks nor did we see the resemblance during the design process. We sincerely apologize to anyone whose feelings we have hurt, it was not our intention,” the firm said. But the company didn’t indicate whether it will change the design. The New York newspaper pointed out the irony that Daniel Libeskind, who is leading the master plan of the business district design, also created the master plan of the rebuilt WTC.
|
|
|
|
|
| rahnita@koreatimes.co.k |
