Let’s take a look at this architecture series by photographer Raphael Olivier about the booming scene of the architecture growth in Seoul, Korea. After horrific events that happened about half of a five decades ago, the city has been rebuilding their foundation and structure to offer us a world-class urban design with concrete, shapes and bold angles that made Seoul, the world’s fastest developing city.

Published on Behance is the work from Raphael Olivier. Raphael is a photographer based in Singapore, you should definitely check out his portfolio. It’s filled with a wide range of styles of photography from portrait and case studies.

Seoul, capital of South Korea, has a history of 2000 years but was heavily bombed during the Korean War (1950 – 1953) and mostly left in ruins.

From the 1960’s, the reconstruction of the country, led by former president Park Chung-hee, was marked by rapid economic growth and industrial development. Seoul became a major economic powerhouse and its population grew exponentially, while its urban landscape was shaped by notoriously boring public housing.

However, in the past decade the city has been quickly reinventing itself as a super trendy capital and creative urban center with world-class design and architecture. One of the most noticeable trends in construction is a massive revival of brutalist-style architecture, refined with a modern twist. Whether for residential, commercial, institutional or religious buildings, the use of raw concrete, bold shapes and sharp angles is becoming predominant all around the city. Through a personal study on Neo-Brutalism, this photo essay aims to give a small glimpse onto the booming architectural scene of Seoul, one of the world’s fastest developing city and Asia’s rising stars.