the cardboard cathedral

Behold, mortals – the world’s only cardboard cathedral! A triumph for sustainable architecture, indeed, the paper-based structure is a temporary home for Christchurch’s Anglican cathedral (the original building suffered major damage in the 2011 earthquake). Japanese architect Shigeru Ban is the clever clogs behind the design, and reckons the cardboard monument will hold for a good 50 years. Turns out the building, made from 98 equally sized recycled cardboard tubes, is one of the city’s safest. “The strength of the building has nothing to do with the strength of the material,” Shigeru Ban says. “Even concrete buildings can be destroyed by earthquakes very easily, but paper buildings cannot.” Good stuff, eh?

Pretty pics by Bridgit Anderson.