Building with earth - Gernot MINKE (1)

Cultural Centre, La Paz, Bolivia
For the Goethe Institute in La Paz, an adobe
dome was erected as a multi-purpose hall
for cultural events. The dome, erected without
formwork and with the aid of a rotation
device, has an unobstructed diameter of
8.8 m and an unobstructed height of 5.65 m.
It was constructed of 9,400 specially handmade
adobes. Corners were rounded for
the sake of improved space acoustics. The
three holes serve as grips for lighter handling,
reducing weight and elevating thermal
insulation. The dome is covered by fibreglass
reinforcement with a synthetic coating.
The acrylic coating contains aluminium powder,
which reflects ultraviolet radiation.
Architect: Gernot Minke, Kassel, Germany
Supervisor: Alexander Fischer, La Paz, Bolivia
Completion: 2000
Area: 75 m 2
182
Built examples