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design
mag
The upmarket suburb of Ekali in the Greek
capital is the unlikely location of a unique
contemporary home that blends modern
architecture with traditional materials and
construction techniques.
The most dramatic expression of the designer’s
philosophy is a double-curved, tiled roof that
cascades over the north side, touching the
ground at the north-eastern corner.
The project’s architect,Thanos
Athanasopoulos, describes home owners in
Ekali as typically “wanting to project a
traditional image while also wanting to have
all the amenities and luxuries of contemporary
life.”The result, he believes, is often “fused and
confused.”
Athanasopoulos is a graduate of the National
Technical University of Athens and completed
his Masters at Harvard University’s Graduate
School of Design. He has operated as a sole
practitioner since 2006, working on
commissions ranging from private residences
to leisure and retail developments.
His designs reflect southern European “white
modernism” but don’t think that Thanos only
embraces the new.“I’m interested in using a
traditional materials and techniques such as
stucco rendering, roof tiles, stone cladding
and travertine,” he tells us on the phone from
his Athens office.“This is the palette that you
will see in old villages and we are trying to find
innovative uses for them.”
The use of terracotta roof tiles
as a walling material is
consistent with the architect’s
vision of combining modern
design with traditional
materials and crafts.
Project:
Kostala House
Location:
Athens, Greece
Function:
Family home
Architect/project manager:
ArTA | Architect
Thanos Athanasopoulos
Structural engineers:
Michael Athanasopoulos &
Alexandros Karageorgous
Photography:
H Louizidis