Monday, April 16, 2007

The Papertainer Museum, South Korea


Papertainer Museum, as the name suggests is constructed only of paper old cargo containers. This huge structure has an aesthetic appeal that few buildings have, and it is supported entirely by dense tubes of paper. The entire museum, designed by renowned Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, consists of 353 paper columns and 166 cargo containers.




This type of paper-design has its own distinguishing qualities. It uses no cement, no stone. It causes no pollution and is completely made of friendly material (neglecting of course, the sheer number of trees felled for this purpose).
It exhibits items of art made purely from recycled materials.


What more, it is water and fire proof to boot. The secret of its safety lies in the density of the paper, which is not as vulnerable as the usual paper we are accustomed to using.



You might have noticed that I did not mention a city in South Korea where it is situated. This is because it does not have a fixed location! It can be dismantled and constructed elsewhere, bringing the aspect of mobility in its already unique design. Infact, from Seoul, it may travel to Pusan and Kwangju.

It is indeed, a revolutionary marvel of architecture.

``This eco-friendly, recyclable museum, is rich in symbolism using containers that transport art and paper tubes that prop up culture,’’ said Lee Young-hye, CEO of Design House, the company that constructed it.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, doesn't seem very eco friendly to me if everybody was to pack up their houses and move around with them.

thelazygenius said...

^ Hi!
Sorry, but whats not eco-friendly if houses were portable?
However, yes, i do agree it isnt too ecofriendly for mass usage, as it would require collosal amount of paper and trees.

Anonymous said...

Does anyone know about the restroom facilities (like the water used) and the heating/cooling systems?