MEC Centre, Greece
Architects & Progect Management: Maria Sfyraki & Associates
Assistant Architect: Apostolis Kassios
Identity | Branding: SUBURBIA
Construction: CCINC Workshop
Woodwork: Pro-Wood
Prints & Copts: Argyris Karras
Photographer: George Dimitrakopoulos
AT HOME
AT HOME
Located in a smooth landscape which genlty rolls towards the enchancing Aegean sea, amongst endless olive groves, vineyards and Mediterranean thicket…
Could it be? Could it be our vacation home? Or our family home where our childhood was enchanted by the stories of our grandparents? Could it be our own shelter of intimacy?
Introduced with the natural materials of Candia (the soft cotton, the pure wool…), the handmade procedures and the respect with which the skillful “hands” of their specialised mattress craftsmen touch the products as if they are their childen, inspired us to create “A Home” for their participation to the 6th Greek Furniture Manufacturers Exhibition.
And we refresh our research on the traditional architecture of the Greek Houses of the Archaic and Classical period. It’s all about simple, honest design· about small, rectangular shaped, white-rendered block· enclosing in its core the most vital space, the courtyard filled with flowers and open to the sky. Those simple ingredients composed the plan of our home, having as key elements: the linear pure white walls, the flower yard, the wooden pergola, the olive tree.
The floor plan, has a central path, a patio leading to the inner courtyard where the seating area is scattered around the planted olive tree. The “rooms” of the home are developed around the courtyard allowing a cyclical movement, but foremost an eye contact with the overall space. The structural clarity and the plain construction, that of the recognizable forms of columns and beams, helps the intended division of the floor plan into “functional rooms” such as: the kitchen, the bathroom, the storage, the main corridor, the bedrooms and the living room.
The kitchen, is a private meeting room. The bathroom is the storage area. The main corridor is an inner “path” that connects the exhibition of the collections and where custom made furniture resembling outdoor benches are used as resting areas and for the desplay of candia’s natural materials. The bedrooms host the mattresses collections: Natureza, Hyperion, Onar and Classic. And finaly, the living room host the premium collection Bodyfix.
The Bodyfix collection stands out from the rest of the “home”. The walls are painted in a warm, earth sand color and elevated 1.5 metre higher than the rest of the construction. From the open ceiling a suspended installation of “wave-shaped” fabrics creats the sense of a shady outdoor space and their movement resembles the summer breeze. Furthemore, one of our sketches, that of a mediterranean landscape, with a chirch, mountains, an alley, a dog and a small boy pulling the donkey’s bridle is transformed into a 3d cut wooden wall installation.
All of the above breath thought the central courtyard where the olive tree is placed and the wooden pergola create geometric shades on the walls. The philosophy of our Home is to enhacne our clients philosophy; that of protecting and preserving the natural beauty and heritage of the Mediterranean, thus offering sustainable products to their clients also. The olive tree is our protaginist, as the symbol that has very deep roots in Greek tradition; sympolizing wealth, health, beauty, wisdom and abundance.
Is it possible to transform an “exhibition booth into an Evolving Cultural Landscape?
