A Tiny Meditation Shelter That Puts You In Touch With Your Surroundings

Matthias Prüger, Manuel Rauwolf and Ulrike Wetzel, the three architects who later founded the practice called allergutendinge, have something to be proud of from the time when they were still students at the Bauhaus University in Germany. We’re talking about the year 2012 when they designed a thing called Seelenkiste which pretty much translates as Spirit Shelter.

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The Spirit Shelter is a tiny structure with only 8 square meters of living space and it was designed to serve as a sort of meditation retreat where people can get in touch with their surroundings. There’s the research sections where the user can use tools to discover the world and the wilderness that surrounds him and the sleeping section where he can relax, meditate and contemplate.

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In other words, the user uses this compact structure to explore both himself and the world around him either through tools or through introspection and meditation. The small size of the structure ensures a better connection to the surroundings.

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The shelter has a split level design. The ground floor is a tiny living space, the upper level is the study area and in between them is the bed/ sleeping area. The front wall folds down to become a small deck and the roof opens as well letting in natural light and allowing the user to observe the surroundings.

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The interior is minimally furnished. The furniture is very simple and basic, there are no unnecessary elements but there’s ample built-in storage in order to ensure a well-organized environment where everything has its own place.

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The Spirit Shelter is mobile. The wood frame construction can be disassembled and then transported to the desired location. It’s not meant as a home and not even as a summer retreat. It’s an experimental structure designed to transmit an idea.

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