A very popular Japanese Architect – Shigeru Ban – has proposed a cardboard-based design for rebuilding the Christ Church Cathedral that had been ravaged under the impact of the earthquake in February this year. Ban has already built many schools, homes and shelters in various disaster-struck locations in Haiti, Kobe (Japan), Turkey and Rwanda – which are made out of materials that enables the structure to be transported elsewhere. The cardboard-based design for the Anglican Church was displayed in Christchurch by the architect himself, who has generously decided to build the structure without charging any money.
Assumed to be built on a $4 million budget, Ban says that it would take three months to construct the church with the same outer appearance that would be large enough to seat 7 hundred people. The cardboard would be sourced locally by using shipping containers and cardboard tubes and the triangle-shaped stain glass window would also be obtained from an artist locally. Ban’s temporary eco-friendly church could very well become a permanent feature of Christchurch – possibly leading to increased tourism traffic and revenue generation for Christchurch.
However, being a temporary structure, the church can be transported elsewhere, just like the one ban built in Kobe that was transported to Taiwan after 10 years. The church proposal has the support of the Prime Minister’s office as they have granted funds to initiate a feasibility study for the same. However, generation of $4 million worth of funds is the only drawback. This temporary cardboard replacement for the Church would be a great way to pull Christchurch out of the financial adversities that it is facing due to the earthquake as it would generate more revenue from tourism, apart from that, the revival of the historical landmark would assure the people for a safer and more hopeful tomorrow.