Tropicana Magazine Mar-Apr 2017 #112: Riding on a Life Line

HOUSE OF CARDS | THE HOME
JAPAN PAVILION EXPO
2000 HANNOVER,
GERMANY (2000)
Ban’s intricate yet light-filled
pavilion, constructed solely
of paper tubes, represented a
significant leap forward in the
field of paper architecture at the
start of the new millennium.
The basic concept behind the
Japan Pavilion was to create a
structure that would produce
as little industrial waste as
possible when dismantled with
the goal to either recycle or
reuse almost all of the materials
that went into the building. It
was thus the perfect illustration
of the theme of the Expo,
which advocated for sustainable
development. Matrix tubes
of recycled paper were used
to achieve the curved tunnel
paper and pass rigid safety tests
of the German government.
Despite construction problems,
the abrupt replacement of
the engineer, months-long
construction delays, and the
necessary addition of a PVC
membrane over the paper
membrane for fire safety issues,
the stunning result speaks
for itself.
43 MARCH/APRIL <strong>2017</strong> | TM