Villa Kekrops

This scheme still remains to be built. We are unsure if we would still take up designing such a grand and ostentatious private house on one of the very few remaining empty plots in the area of Palaio Psychico. In the decade that followed this project we became even more conscious of our planet’s climatic issues, therefore, our policies evolved. Through our collaborations, we are dedicated to promoting sustainable, environmentally friendly projects.

For this project we were chosen by our trustful real estate client who gave us freedom to design as we wished as long as we provided all the spaces and facilities described in the architecture programme he handed us -and they were quite a few! As we love and study the period of modernism our approach was guided by houses designed during that time. We followed an analytical path to create a functional sequence expressed by the forms we designed.

The house is laid out on four levels: two main floors, a basement and a terrace. All levels are connected via a linear free-standing staircase placed right under a skylight and -of course- with an elevator. This sculptural staircase-skylight duo and an atrium are key features of the design. We chose an introverted composition creating a private backyard veranda and a secluded garden with a swimming pool. The element of water has a main role in our design: there is a canal of water that runs from the swimming pool across the south-west plot side coming right up to the picture window of the dining room.

Our one extravagance was to adorn a waterfall fountain by the pool with gold mosaic tiles. After all, this house could have been designed as a stage set for the movie “The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover”!

Directed by Peter Greenaway