The Aegean Islands in Greece are known for their strong winds – and the Cycladic island of Paros is no exception. It was this element that helped define the shape and layout of a striking new home designed by Athens- and Paros-based Greek architecture studio React – drawing on the surrounding environment and island lifestyle to create a cocoon for minimalist life. The project, named KITE, is a piece of crisp, minimalist architecture arranged around a central courtyard and set in a way the emphasises horizontality, in keeping with the landscape and local building fabric.
The site is located on a gentle slope a stone’s throw from the shore, overlooking the sea and the smaller island of Antiparos. Within it, the smart, white volumes of the house negotiate the irregularly shaped plot, while offering a feeling of protection for the residents. ‘The central courtyard acts as a nucleus, with immediate reference to the closed spaces and the environment: it is an organic part of the whole that retains both privacy and transparency,’ say the architects, Yiorgos Spiridonos and Natasha Deliyianni.
Cycladic simplicity for a minimalist life
A swimming pool and garden, sparsely populated by native vegetation, drawing on the island’s wider natural setting, complete the complex. Meanwhile, two ‘promenades’ give ‘the feeling of a small settlement', the architects explain, opening up views and pathways as needed to improve circulation, manage winds and ensure the ‘disarming simplicity with the environment’ takes centre stage.
The pared-down approach continues inside. Plastered and painted brickwork are matched by painted timber doors and windows. Industrial floors and metal pergolas add an element of roughness and durability to the whole, which contains living space and guest suites on the ground level and a master bedroom on a small upper floor above the living areas.
Transparency, nature and a contextual minimalism that draws on the island’s atmosphere of Cycladic simplicity dominate in this holiday home – ensuring relaxation and serenity come hand in hand with a showstopping architectural adventure.
INFORMATION
-
Discothèque perfumes evoke the scent of Tokyo in the year 2000As Discothèque gets ready to launch its first perfume collection, Mary Cleary catches up with the brand’s founders
-
This unassuming London house is a radical rethinking of the suburban homeStation Lodge by architect Andrei Saltykov in South West London offers a radical subversion to regional residential architecture
-
Explore 100 years of Svenskt Tenn and the interiors Estrid Ericson has crafted‘A Philosophy of Home’ explores 100 years of Svenskt Tenn and the daring vision for interiors its founder Estrid Ericson developed
-
Remembering Alexandros Tombazis (1939-2024), and the Metabolist architecture of this 1970s eco-pioneerBack in September 2010 (W*138), we explored the legacy and history of Greek architect Alexandros Tombazis, who this month celebrates his 80th birthday.
-
Tour House D in Athens, where interiors are peachy keenDesigned by Cometa Architects, House D in Athens is full of curvy, colourful character
-
Sun-drenched Los Angeles houses: modernism to minimalismFrom modernist residences to riveting renovations and new-build contemporary homes, we tour some of the finest Los Angeles houses under the Californian sun
-
Three Object Apartment embraces raw concrete honesty in the heart of AthensThree Object Apartment by DeMachinas is a raw concrete home in Athens, which confidently celebrates its modernist bones
-
Residence in Dionysos was conceived as a minimalist ‘cave refuge’ outside AthensResidence in Dionysos by Desypri & Misiaris Architecture is a family home designed as a minimalist refuge among the surrounding nature's pine tree-filled slopes
-
This Greek villa's superyacht aesthetics conceal two self-contained family residencesA Greek villa in the upscale Athens suburb of Filothei, House Symbiosis is home for two sibling families, designed in white, sweeping volumes by Direction Architects
-
A Filothei house rises to the occasion in its angled Athens plotA Filothei house by Kallos Turin is an Athens residence rising to the occasion on an angled plot
-
This colourful Athens apartment takes small space living to a new levelPocketed away on a residential street, this colourful Athens apartment smartly utilises every inch of its footprint with segmented flooring and rich textural design
