Cardboard Prototype Dwelling

 
Artist Rendering

In 2003, construction begun here at Camp Sister Spirit on a prototype dwelling based on the award winning design by Los Angeles based designer Sonny Ward. The construction was funded in part by a grant from an Arcus Foundation Endowment awarded to Ward earlier that year. Our thanks to all the volunteers that came out to help (click here for pictures).

The construction is based on a design and building technique using compressed used cardboard which Sonny Ward initially devised as part of a thesis program at Woodbury University in Burbank, CA. Discarded cardboard was proposed as an effective and low cost building material. The construction technique contemplates used cardboard, stacked and compressed, as the primary building element. Steel threaded rods and plywood plates are used to achieve structural and thermal resistance qualities. The cardboard structure is used as a cabin on the grounds of the Camp and is rentable. As part of the design, the structure was covered with cardboard shingles, dipped in latex paint for weatherproofing.

Card Board Shingles

The design scheme and proposed construction was a featured exhibit at “Urban Innovations: Next Phase 2X8” at the Museum of Architecture + Design in Los Angeles, CA. The American Institute of Architecture, Los Angeles Chapter, honored Ward as one of the “outstanding talents of the next phase of future designers who will shape our world.”

The construction was funded by the Arcus Foundation Endowment. The Arcus Foundation Endowment, at the College of Environmental Design at the University of California Berkeley, awarded the grant to Ward in July 2002. The Endowment was established in 2000 with a gift from the Arcus Foundation in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Interior View

Large amounts of cardboard are currently disposed of in our landfills at the same time that the lack of affordable housing and low-cost construction remains a problem. This discarded cardboard can be an effective and low-cost building material. We currently overlook excess waste and materials that, with minor modifications, can be used to build affordable structures, while decreasing the proliferation of industrial and consumer waste. Government entities and certain nonprofit organizations are unable to provide sufficient low-cost housing, temporary dwellings and other service structures for the communities they serve. The economics of mainstream construction present a real and often insurmountable barrier. Meanwhile, architects focus on servicing a client base to which access to capital is not a primary issue, while architecture as a profession continually refuses to address the growing issue of economic waste.

Cardboard will allow us to begin to meet some of our construction needs while also allowing us to promote a more respectful relationship with the environment. The residential bunkhouses currently on CSS property are made from prefabricated storage sheds. These sheds only partially fulfill individual space needs and are unable to protect their inhabitants from extreme temperatures. While the cost of purchasing and adapting these sheds is lower than typical construction, it is still beyond the means of CSS. Cardboard dwellings can be made more economically, are more in keeping with the environmental concerns of CSS and, ultimately, will be more comfortable dwellings for the inhabitants. This project details a design and building technique for the construction of compressed cardboard cabins and bathroom/shower facilities for Camp Sister Spirit.

The shelters proposed will be made primarily of used cardboard and built as shown and described in supporting material. Used cardboard will be stacked and compressed, using steel threaded rods and plywood plates, to achieve desired structural and thermal resistance qualities. The structures will be covered with cardboard shingles dipped in latex paint for weatherproofing.

For further information, contact Sonny Ward:
cardboard@sonnyward.com
323.874.1884