Beloved Japanese Architect Shigeru Ban continues to impress the public with designs using cardboard as a construction material. This time Shigeru Ban Architects has designed a mountain lodge hut on Yakushima Island in Kagoshima, Japan. This building built from recycled paper tubes provides shelter from the ancient’s forest harsh weather. Much like Shigeru Ban’s natural disaster-proof structures, this hut will withstand Mother Nature’s forces and can be easily repaired if a tube becomes damaged.
This narrow hut is a two story tower that provides a structural buffer from the national park’s forest beyond. The hut is part of the world heritage site located on Yakushima Island in East China Sea’s Ōsumi island chain. The subtropical climate can provide heavy precipitation, which is why the mountain hut sports a dramatical slanted roof to shed the rain. Horizontally installed paper tubes are stacked with transparent tubes in between each larger paper tube in order to provide a day-lit interior. A small loft within has a balcony, which can be used to enjoy rare sunny days.
The mountain lodge was built on the foundations of a dilapidated hut that needed to be demolished, and not only shows a keen use of a recyclable material, but also helps to preserve the park’s precious untouched natural forest floor. Shigeru Ban Architects continues to provide inspiring environmentally sensitive work on many levels of sustainable excellence.
+Shigeru Ban Architects
Via PSFK
