Seoul, Basel to expand cooperation on urban architecture; discuss joint projects for the biennale

[Financial News] Seoul is seeking to expand exchanges with Basel, Switzerland, in urban architecture and pursue cooperation at next year’s Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism. Architects from the two cities will discuss shared challenges, including urban development and the use of public spaces, while the city also explores ways to apply international examples to its cultural facilities projects. The Seoul Metropolitan Government said on the 4th that Kim Seong-bo, its Second Vice Mayor for Administrative Affairs, met Conradin Cramer, governor of the canton of Basel-Stadt, in Basel, Switzerland, on the 3rd (local time), to discuss cooperation in urban architecture.
The meeting followed up on a memorandum of understanding on urban architecture exchanges signed last year by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the canton of Basel-Stadt. The two sides shared the results and progress of this year’s ongoing architect exchange program and discussed ways to continue their cooperation at the sixth Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism, scheduled for 2027.
Deputy Mayor Kim also attended the ‘Seoul–Basel Architects Public Forum’ at K-Haus in Basel that day, sharing Seoul’s experiences, including its architectural challenges. The forum, organized by the canton of Basel-Stadt and the Swiss arts foundation Pro Helvetia, brought together Korean and Swiss architects.
From Korea, architects Jeong Sang-gyeong, Baek Han-yeol and Hong Jeong-hui took part, while Magdalena Stadler and Miriam Stierle presented from Switzerland. They exchanged views on topics including how to create new spaces while preserving a city’s distinctive identity, the role of public spaces and social sustainability.
The forum was part of the 2026 Seoul–Switzerland Architects Exchange Program, taking place from the 2nd to the 6th in Basel, Bern, Geneva and Zurich, Switzerland. The Korean architects are set to visit local architecture firms and major buildings and take part in workshops to learn about examples of public architecture and residential space design.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government also plans to examine how cultural facilities operate overseas during the exchange program. In particular, it will look to Switzerland’s Schaulager and the Netherlands’ Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen—which store artworks while also serving research and exhibition functions—as reference cases, and explore what could be applied to its ‘Visible Storage’ project underway in Seoul’s Seoripul area.
“The dialogue between cities fostered through the Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism is leading to substantive exchanges among architects,” Deputy Mayor Kim said. “Building on this meeting, I will work to help Seoul and Basel share their experiences and continue their cooperation at the 2027 Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism.”

[email protected] Seong Cho-rong Reporter