Syros house is conceived like a small Greek island village
This Syros house by architects Block722 is a holiday home in Greece, designed like a small island village
This Syros house, titled Residence Viglostasi and designed by Athens-based architecture studio Block722, is a Greek island holiday home conceived to feel entirely in sync with its picturesque, natural locale. The project – a commission for a private client, a family of four – had to draw on its island setting while offering a generous and contemporary, yet modest space for its residents. The answer? The architects crafted the house’s distinctive character by cleverly drawing on the typology of small Aegean villages – minimalist architecture constellations of low volumes, often found sprawled on hillsides, looking out towards the sea.'
Syros house: a home in sync with its island setting
Block722 is known for a signature, masterful use of minimalism that taps on each project’s surroundings, natural materials, gentle colour tones and serene overall atmosphere – past projects have included the Cretan retreat ‘O Lofos’, completed last year. Here too, the team, led by studio co-founders Sotiris Tsergas and Katja Margaritoglou, worked with the sense of place crafted by the typical Greek island dwellings, using stone, timber and white render to compose a family of low volumes. These form a complex of small structures connected by external pathways and terraces – much like the region’s Aegean island communities.
Inside, ‘gentle luxury’ is instilled via careful material selection and a distinct sense of space – flowing interiors, expansive gardens and terraces, and large openings throughout. The materials used span Olympus marble, travertine stone, bamboo, and oak wood.
‘It all perfectly fits the client’s vision for a home that feels like a family of traditional Aegean structures, offering different views, feels and qualities of space to play with and enjoy,’ the architects say in a written statement.
Nature permeates every corner, either through the long sea vistas, the numerous planted areas and decked terraces, shading garden pergolas, and the green roofs throughout the complex, which have been populated with local species. Meanwhile, a few steps at the bottom on the sloped plot lead visitors down to the clients’ own cove, used, they explain, for private swimming and yacht mooring.
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
A new limited-edition Rhodes piano and Gibson doubleneck guitar aim for the stars
The new Rhodes Mk8 Earth Edition piano and Gibson Jimmy Page EDS-1275 Doubleneck guitar revisit classic instruments at a price
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
The new interior design trends we spotted at Salone del Mobile 2024
These are the interior design trends to look out for in 2024 and beyond, from soft upholstery to conversation pits and low dining
By Rosa Bertoli Published
-
Tiffany & Co nods to its theatrical history with a surreal new campaign
Tiffany & Co campaign ‘With Love, Since 1837’ sees Dan Tobin Smith and set designer Rachel Thomas create an offbeat set
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Residence in Dionysos was conceived as a minimalist ‘cave refuge’ outside Athens
Residence in Dionysos by Desypri & Misiaris Architecture is a family home designed as a minimalist refuge among the surrounding nature's pine tree-filled slopes
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
This Greek villa's superyacht aesthetics conceal two self-contained family residences
A 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
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
A Filothei house rises to the occasion in its angled Athens plot
A Filothei house by Kallos Turin is an Athens residence rising to the occasion on an angled plot
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
This colourful Athens apartment takes small space living to a new level
Pocketed away on a residential street, this colourful Athens apartment smartly utilises every inch of its footprint with segmented flooring and rich textural design
By Tianna Williams Published
-
KKMK, Greece: Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2023
The Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2023's newest entry is Greek studio KKMK, behind projects such as this minimalist haven in Athens’ Psychiko
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
A Kythnos Island house offers a 21st-century take on the local vernacular
A Kythnos Island house, Piperi, is a contemporary Greek home by Sigurd Larsen drawing on its location's vernacular
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Ridge House flows in the spirit of its Antiparos Island landscape
Ridge House by AREA, Architecture Research Athens for Oliaros Development is a Greek retreat, perfectly embedded in its Antiparos island setting
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
The Social Athens makes waves in the Greek capital
The Social Athens by OOAK architects opens, featuring a distinctive wavy façade and an interior that balances social life and seclusion
By Ellie Stathaki Published