Collaborators:
Alkestie Skarlatou, lighting designer Manos Vordonarakis, industrial design consultant Sophia Vantaraki, space consultant
Contractor: Divercity
Photos: Erieta Attali
The 600m2 private residence, situated on the same property as the existing family home, is located in Psychiko (a hilly suburb of Athens) on a 1000m2 site offering commanding views to the cityscape below.
The house is divided into three zones; one which houses the gallery for the owners collection of vintage cars and modern art; the amphitheatre like upper floor encompasses the private areas of the residence and a transparent and fluid living area which occupies the space between them.
The house is experienced through a curved line which cuts through the stone wall, sheltering the residence from surrounding buildings to the south. It then opens to a view towards the intimate pool garden and offers an opportunity for shared space with the neighbouring house. Finally, as it becomes wider, it forms the living space of the residence, which offers a dramatic expansive view of Olympic Park below. The effect is like standing on the edge of a diving board ready to plunge into the cityscape.
As the opaque, linear, stone-clad boundary wall to the south peels away, it is echoed by the swimming pool, a canal that connects the front and back of the house. Glazed partitions, skylights, and slatted blinds allow natural light to penetrate the living spaces The house is conceived and experienced as a series of surprises playing with light and scale while the design exploits the tension between conflicting elements opaqueness and transparency, intimacy and openness, curves juxtaposed with angular geometry.
