공공공간의 기호학: 광장의 가시성, 진화, 문화적 의미- 캄포⋅타임스⋅광화문 광장에 대한 기호학적 분석을 중심으로 비교 = Semiotics of Public Space: Visibility, Evolution, and Cutural Significance of the Square: Comparison focusing on semiotic analysis of Campo, Times, and Gwanghwamun Square

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This study examines public squares as complex semiotic systems through a comparative analysis of Piazza del Campo in Siena, Times Square in New York, and Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul. Utilizing theoretical frameworks from semiotics, urban studies, and sensory theory, this research explores how these spaces encode cultural values and shape social experiences through visibility, cultural-historical contexts, and multisensory dimensions.
Specifically, this study clearly presents the methodological validity of selecting these three squares. The triadic comparative framework is based on Lévi-Strauss’s structuralist methodology, encompassing three distinct spatial paradigms: traditional community space(Piazza del Campo), modern urban center(Times Square), and hybrid negotiation space(Gwanghwamun Square). Based on field analysis over a certain peropd of time, this study applies Baudrillard’s hyperreality theory, Augé’s non-place concept, and Sitte’s theory of space to analyze how each square constructs cultural meaning in different ways. By examining Times Square’s commercial environment, Piazza del Campo’s historical continuity, and Gwanghwamun Square’s tradition-modernity hybridity, this research identifies various semiotic paradigms of contemporary urban space.
Based on systematic field observation and user behavior analysis, this study integrates architectural semiotics with human spatial practices to understand how spaces and users co-construct cultural meaning through ongoing interaction, negotiation, and appropriation.
The analysis reveals distinct patterns in how three squares negotiate communal identity, power, and modernity. Piazza del Campo demonstrates organic spatial cohesion through Sitte’s principles, Times Square exemplifies Baudrillard’s hyperreal commercial spectacle, and Gwanghwamun Square represents Lotman’s cultural boundary phenomena where tradition and modernity negotiate meaning. By understanding squares as multisensory texts that perform cultural identity through spatial syntax and sensory codes and embodied experience, this study provides insights for urban design and cultural preservation in the era of globalization.