Parasitic Architecture
Parasitic Architecture
Parasitic Architecture
Rucksak House
Stefan Eberstadt
A parasite is an organism that grows, feeds and sheltered by its host while contributing nothing to the host’s
survival. Therefore parasitic architecture can be defined “as an adaptable, transient and exploitive form of
architecture that forces relationships with host buildings in order to complete themselves.” (definition taken from
Rucksack House is perched on the edge of
parasitic architecture.)
both sculpture and architecture as well as
on the side of a building. Eberstadt’s add- Parasitic Architecture can be thought of as a flexible and sometimes temporary structure that feeds off the
on room is constructed of a welded steel existing infrastructure and build form. A parasite has to work with existing infrastructures and use them to its
cage with a light birch veneered plywood own end but can also be considered as an architectural intervention that materializes and transforms the built
interior cladding. The outside is clad with form. A parasitic construction redefines and reconfigures a built structure and provides a new perspective or
exterior grade plywood with an absorbent orientation to the public and potentially offer a new space.
resin surface punctuated by plexiglas
inserts. The room is suspended from steel
cables that are anchored to the roof or to
the facade of the existing building.
Entrance to the room is gained via an
existing window, and once inside, it is
spacious and naturally daylit.
With 9 sq meters (97 sq ft) of space, the
Rucksack House is open and can be used
for a variety of activities like an extra
bedroom, studio space or a living area.
Built-in furniture makes the space more
usable, but still open. Sections of the
walls unfold, with the help of hidden
magnets, into a desk, shelves, and a
platform for reading or sleeping. The
entire box is mobile and can move as the
resident does to the next dwelling
providing instant add-on space. In 2004,
the Rucksack House was in Leipzig, then in
Cologne in 2005 and then moved to
Bamberg in 2011.
Pavilion in
A r c h i t e c t u r e
In an age of constant change, temporary
structures have a special significance, for they
allow a quick, flexible and usually cost-effective
response to shifting needs. Buildings with a
limited life also afford architects and planners
greater freedom than permanent structures to
explore unconventional spatial solutions, new
materials and forms of construction or to play
with visual ideas.
Black Lodge
Jägnefält MIlton