Abstract

To the question: “Is it possible to do architecture in a disaster area?” the XIII Architecture Biennale of Venice answered by awarding the 2012 Golden Lion Award to the Japanese Pavilion. The emergency architecture created in response to the tsunami in 2011 was considered very timely (Fig.1). As much as the terminology of “emergency housing” invokes a concept of quick response and relief for basic needs in a humanitarian crisis, large scale architectural models have ended up being misguided and highly disappointing throughout their short but intense presence in history. In addition, it has been strained by an increasing necessity in the world. Our history with emergency housing has thus far been a failed experiment (Fig.2).