The New York Times architecture critic, Michael Kimmelman, interviewed 2014 Pritzker Prize winner Shigeru Ban for the 2014 New York Times Cities for Tomorrow conference. Via The New York Times

Heating for the unit is provided by a Spartherm fireplace, with electric heating integrated into the magnesite floor. Walls are insulated with fire-tested wool felt under plywood panels.

It takes three to five days to install a Vipp Shelter onsite.

Load-bearing elements are clustered together in the form of storage instead of a typical post-and-beam format.

The Japanese brand Muji will begin selling his kit house in 2014, which is prefabricated using furniture (i.e. storage units) as load-bearing modules. House of Furniture’s exterior looks more like a pavilion than a box.

The interior is a spatially open layout with a flexible DIY storage system that supports the ceiling.

Shigeru Ban, Cardboard Cathedral A testament to the strength, skill, and poignancy of the Pritzker winner’s “emergency architecture,” this A-frame marvel of cardboard tubing and shipping containers served as a potent symbol for Christchurch’s recovery after an earthquake. In another symbolic touch, the stained glass triangle at the front of the church incorporates imagery from the former cathedral’s famous rose window.

The proportions and floorplan mimic those of the prior landmark, though the new, temporary structure is built of paper tube modules.

In 2013, Ban’s office introduced its new disaster housing prototype, the New Temporary House, whose exterior is made of insulated sandwich panels and fiber-reinforced plastic.

As part of the House Vision exhibition, organized by Muji art director Kenya Hara in 2013, architect Shigeru Ban was tasked with designing a housing prototype that relies on furniture to provide structure.

After the 6.3-magnitude earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, in February of 2011, Ban was asked to design a replacement cathedral for the city.

Architect Shigeru Ban has designed temporary shelters for disaster-stricken areas such as Japan, Turkey, New Zealand, India, and the Phillipines.

SHIGERU BAN "Hanegi Forest–architecture among trees, designed by Shigeru Ban in 2007. The challenge was to avoid pulling down a single tree in the forest and to build a house around them. Shigeru Ban’s home is in this building, which stands immobile in a tranquil Tokyo district. A round table, a Terragni chair, a Greek face and masses of light. Nothing else, a Zen monk’s room." Photo by Hiroyuki Hirai.

For 2015, Vipp, the Danish industrial design company known for its iconic trash cans and all-black kitchens, introduces a 592-square-foot prefab unit called Shelter.

The construction was carried out in cooperation with students from the University of San Carlos in Cebu.

Delta Shelter | Olson Kundig

This 1,000 square-foot weekend cabin in Mazama, Washington, is essentially a "steel box on stilts," according to the firm. The three-story structure, which includes a living room and kitchen, can be completely shuttered when the owner is away.

Artek, 10 Unit System, Designer Shigeru Ban

Shigeru Ban: The Curtain Wall House in Tokyo, Japan, 1994-1995

Christof Jantzen of Studio Jantzen has conceptualized a temporary classroom to fulfill the need for healthier temporary spaces—that often become permanent—for students. His plan seeks to address issues of flexibility, sustainability, cost effectiveness, and creative construction.

The building begins as a kit of parts to be constructed onsite.

The elevations show a building that is more attuned to its environment than existing temporary classrooms.

"Teaching and learning methods are intrinsically linked to the environments in which they are produced," says Jantzen. "We must consider the most sustainable [building] methods." Those include simple approaches such as improving air quality through a more open-plan design.

A small terrace outfitted with an H55 easy chair by Björn Hultén offers a view of the San Francisco Bay.

A vintage bar unit, a Tube Chandelier by Michael Anastassiades, and a David Harouni artwork are highlights in the open-plan living and dining space. The architects removed heavy paneling from the walls to lighten the space.

Among Jantzen's goals for his design is "to support existing technologies, accommodate advancing technologies, and provide better control of light, ventilation, and acoustics."

"In this project, we got so much benefit out of this 'secret garden' for the master suite along with all of these environmental benefits that the residents were excited to embrace. It's one of the pieces we are happiest about," says architect Jonathan Feldman.

The stairs lead to a sleeping loft outfitted with a mechanical skylight.

Legless kitchen island by Shigeru Ban, MUJI chairs by Naoto Fuksawa.

Made of stainless steel and TEKA hardwood, a Curzon dining table by Modloft is surrounded by a quartet of Victoria Ghost dining chairs by Philippe Starck for Kartell. A striped Missy pendant light by Filipe Lisboa hangs overhead. Four Chill White media consoles from CB2 line the western wall.

Shigeru Ban's red 10 Unit System for Artek at LongHouse Reserve. Photo via Artek Americas.

Shigeru Ban's vision for more sustainable, human architecture bears fruit with the seven-story Tameida Office Building in Zurich, a commercial center with blond wood joinery decorating the interior. The playful wooden curves in the lobbies and stairwells recall freshly sanded wood in a carpenter's workshop, giving the entire complex an airy, light complexion.

Jonathan Adler and Simon Doonan collaborated with New Haven, Connecticut, firm Gray Organschi on their midcentury-inspired New York vacation home.

The bathroom includes a stainless steel-and-aluminum Vipp bath module with integrated sink, faucet, and Corian countertop; Vipp spot lamp; glass-walled shower with a complete set of Vipp bathroom accessories; towels; and a Duravit toilet.

Dear disaster by Swedish designer Jenny Ekdahl is simply a cupboard with a movable surface structure. Perhaps not so simply, its surface is comprised of 2,000 wooden scales, which can be reversed to create a constant shift of pattern.