Paper Dome

Paper Dome is a temporary church building constructed using paper tubes as structural elements. It was designed on a pro-bono basis by Shigeru Ban, internationally known Japanese architect who is renowned for his paper tube structures and buildings. This temporary structure was built on September 17, 1995 to serve as a temporary church for Takatori Catholic Church after the Great Hanshin earthquake. Nonetheless, the venue was not only limited for use to religious worship but also used as a place for communal gatherings. However, when the church community planned to build a permanent building, the structure was donated to Taomi Village in Puli Township, Nantou County,Taiwan which had suffered the 921 earthquake in 1999. The deconstructed structure was shipped in 2006 to Taiwan, reconstructed there and is now one of the top tourist attractions in that area.

On January 1995 Japan suffered from the Great Hanshin earthquake. 60% of all buildings were destroyed in Kobe, the epicentre of the disaster, including the Takatori Catholic church. However, strangely a statue of Jesus remained unharmed. People understood this fact as a miracle and they decided to rebuild the church as soon as possible. An internationally known Japanese architect Shigeru Ban was invited to build a temporary church for survivors.

Shigeru Ban is famous for his passion for using paper material in his projects. Indeed, paper although seemingly soft and non-effective for building, can actually be strong and trustful if used in the right way. Moreover, it is cheap, light and recyclable. Shegeru Ban is also known for his humanistic beliefs and social orientation. He built shelters for refuges in Africa and South America. There he noticed that cheap plastic shelters were too cold for people and it was more appropriate to use paper shelters.

Shigeru Ban created an ellipse-shape construction built from 58 cardboard tubes. 160 volunteers helped to build it and it took only five weeks to finish the project. The temporary church was nicknamed “Paper Dome”. Paper Dome became not only the new religious centre but a place of mutual help and support. It played the role of a community meeting place connecting Kobe residents.

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