The spread and meaning of <i>national housing</i> in 20th-century print media: focusing on newspapers from the 1940s to the 1970s

This study explores the development of national housing as a dominant residential type in the Republic of Korea and investigates the role of print media in shaping and disseminating the vision of national housing from the 1940s to the 1970s. Originating during the Japanese colonial period, national housing was institutionalized through a state-led modernization process and framed by evolving visual strategies in newspaper advertisements. By visually analyzing 127 cases including design competitions and housing sales announcements and advertisements, this study identifies a transition from state-driven normative discourse to increasingly commercialized and consumer-oriented representations. Guided by visual theories, the study analyzes how layout, typography, and visual images, including floor plans, site diagrams, and bird’s-eye views communicate the values of national housing. Print media not only delivered state messaging but actively participated in shaping a visual culture of residential modernity. By the 1970s, apartments had become the standardized form of national housing, representing middle class identity and national development. In this context, national housing functioned not merely as a policy instrument but as a culturally constructed visual narrative. Therefore, this study contributes to broader discussions on the reciprocal relationship between national housing, embedded in the discourse of its time, and print media.