Public Story
Yongpyong
From 1974 to 1993, my dad worked as the chief architect of Yongpyong, the first ski resort in South Korea. The resort's opening marked a turning point in history when Koreans could afford leisure activities — a remarkable feat considering the country was one of the world's poorest following the Korean War.
After my dad retired, we immigrated to Canada, and although I knew Yongpyong was one of my dad's great accomplishments, he didn't talk about his work much. In a common story among immigrant families, we drifted apart in our new country, and I never felt we reconciled before he suddenly died from pancreatic cancer in 2005.
He never got to see his resort become a host site for the 2018 Winter Olympic Games. I visited in January 2018 to feel and photograph his presence and legacy.
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