Blue Ocean Dome project for Osaka Expo 2025, spearheaded by architect Shigeru Ban and ZERI Japan. The initiative is a bold architectural and environmental response to some of the most urgent ocean-related challenges facing the planet today.
At the heart of the project are three architecturally distinct domes, each designed by Shigeru Ban using pioneering materials that reflect his philosophy of responsible, forward-thinking construction:
- Dome A: Made of laminated bamboo, addressing neglected bamboo forests and showcasing bamboo as a strong, eco-friendly structural material.
- Dome B: The world’s first large-scale structure using CFRP (Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic), offering lightweight, strong, and recyclable architecture without the need for piling work.
- Dome C: Built with paper tubes in an atomic-like structure, serving as a networking hub for exhibitions and events.
About the architectural concept behind the project, Shigeru Ban says:
“Looking at the history of World Expositions, pavilion architecture has in the past been a place for experimentation with ideas, structures, and materials for future buildings. Unfortunately, in recent years this tradition has died out, and most pavilions have become simple ‘play of shapes’ relying on computer technology. We are now proposing new materials and structure that are unprecedented in the world. The main dome is made of CFRP (Carbone Fiber Reinforced Plastic) tubes, which have been used in airplane and car bodies but not yet as a main structure in architecture. By reducing the weight of the structure to less than of the weight of the soil excavated for the building foundation, we succeeded in eliminating the need for piling work on this weak reclaimed site, also facilitating the relocation of the exhibition thanks to its lightweight building. The sub-dome uses a paper tube structure made of recycled paper and laminated bamboo, developed for the first time in the world.”
Ban’s reputation for pioneering the use of materials such as paper tubes and CFRP, notably in disaster relief and sustainable architecture, is echoed in the vision for the Blue Ocean Dome.
About Shigeru Ban Architects
Shigeru Ban Architects (SBA), which was founded by award-winning Japanese Architect Shigeru Ban in 1985 and renowned for its innovative work with timber, paper, and bamboo structures, provides full architectural design services globally from early concept through construction administration. SBA is composed of 80 professionals throughout three offices in Tokyo, Paris, and New York. The firm’s design excellence, coupled with its commitment to environmental and ecological design, is continuously recognised by the numerous awards received from distinguished institutions throughout the world, including the Pritzker Architecture Prize, which was awarded to Shigeru Ban in 2014, and the Praemium Imperiale for Architecture 2024. The international award honors the work of an architect that consistently and significantly contributes to humanity and the built environment, showcasing a combination of talent, vision, and commitment. Founded on a strong basis of structural rationality, environmental awareness, and spatial purity, SBA looks at integrating new ways of bringing iconic visions to life across the world.