Form-finding

Shigeru Ban stands for meaningful architecture like almost no other. The undreamt-of potential of paper as a material, which he began to explore back in the late 1980s, not only spans the famous arches of his buildings, but also unites social and economic concerns under one roof.

Tokyo-born architect Shigeru Ban sees his role as an architect as far more extensive than the mere creation of supporting structures. As the basic construction materials of his buildings, paper and cardboard not only symbolize the progressive use of modern production and design possibilities, but also stand for an expanded social awareness and resource-saving construction. The resulting buildings are symbolic of the mindfulness with which Ban approaches his projects and whose design and implementation he derives with a keen sense of the individual social and cultural context.

TASCHEN is now dedicating a monograph to Ban’s unique, solution-oriented approach and unmistakable style, entitled »Shigeru Ban. Complete Works 1985 – Today «, which approaches the work of the Pritzker Prize winner through both personal anecdotes and scientific questions.

As the size and format of the monumental volume already suggest, the success story of the exceptional architect, who is regarded as a symbolic figure of Japanese architecture, is given an appropriate setting here. »It was the beginning of paper architecture«, Ban describes one of his very early projects from 1986, referring to the design of the architecture for an exhibition in Tokyo dedicated to the work of Finnish architect and furniture designer Alvar Aalto. Paper tubes were used as a cheaper alternative to Aalto’s favorite material, wood, and Ban established them as the unmistakable structural elements of his work at a time when the use of ecologically compatible building materials could still be described as progressive.

His Curtain Wall House, an architectural experiment created in Tokyo between 1993 and 1995, also stands in the context of something radically new, in which Ban questions the concept of the walls of a house. In order to reduce the heaviness of the construction, he uses glass doors and curtains that can be opened or closed completely towards the city in addition to narrow columns.

His early exploration of the significance of walls was taken to the extreme in 1997 with the realization of the project »The Wall-less house« in Nagano, Japan. The concept is based on the vision of a »universal floors«, a continuous floor that compensates for the missing walls and connects all the rooms. This construction method also corresponds to Ban’s view that a strong supporting structure is not tied to the material used, but to a sophisticated construction.

However, Shigeru Ban proves his flexibility as an architect and his attitude as a person above all with his buildings in disaster areas, where walls play an extremely essential role as protective structures. His cost-effective and environmentally friendly »Paper Tube Structures« proved to be of particular importance in the aid projects of the NGO Voluntary Architects Network, which he founded in 1995 and whose aim was to build temporary houses and huts for earthquake victims in Kobe (Japan), civil war refugees in Rwanda (East Africa) and tsunami victims in Sri Lanka. From 1995 to 2000, Shigeru Ban worked as a consultant to the UN Refugee Commission.

One example of this is the so-called »Paper Log Houses«. These served as emergency shelters after the devastating earthquake in Kobe – built from beer crates, sandbags, plywood, cardboard tubes, waterproof adhesive tape and steel rods. The »Paper Church« was also erected as a temporary community center, which also provided spiritual refuge for the residents.

His constructive experiments using unusual materials also resulted in his unmistakable major works, such as the Centre Pompidou-Metz, the Swatch/Omega Campus in Switzerland, a two-story penthouse on the roof of a 140-year-old New York landmark Cast Iron House and La Seine Musicale, a concert hall integrated into Jean Nouvel’s master plan on the Ile Séguin in France.

With his monograph »Shigeru Ban. Complete Works 1985 – Today«, TASCHEN has brought together Ban’s life’s work to date in an impressive 696-page volume, bringing the spirit of his work back into the bottle. [DM]

Also available as an Art Edition, limited to 200 copies with a signed art print by Shigeru Ban and a custom-made 3D laser-cut wooden cover.