A house that is built surrounded by trees.

Location: Skiathos, Sporades, Greece
Status: Completed 2011
K-Studio Design Team: Konstantinos Karampatakis, Marivenia Chiotopoulou
Lighting Designer: Halo
Construction Manager: Achilleas Mourtzouxos Raxevsky
Concrete Engineer: Odysseaus Verroios
Steel Engineer: George Ioannidis
Photographer: Yiorgos Kordakis

About Studio

K-STUDIO is a design practice rooted in Architecture. Our contextual approach produces unique and immersive experiences through Architecture, Interior, and Hardscape Design, allowing us to achieve a holistic sense of experience across the range of spatial qualities within every project.

This approach is applied to any scale of the project and allows us to treat larger-scale, more complex works as collections of smaller studies, creating expansive systems for design with greater clarity, definition, and attention to detail. We are a creative studio of architects and interior designers based in central Athens.

Our home is Greece, a country of incredible natural beauty and resources, where the cultural identity is founded upon being outside and making good, economic use of local skills, materials, and agriculture to provide nourishing hospitality to visitors from near or far. We create crafted architectural experiences that are informed by tradition, enriched by materiality, and inspired by contemporary life.

We do not like a waste. We make minimal interventions that use minimal resources and always prefer to work with the elements to create comfort that is naturally luxurious. Our expertise is instinctive and is applied to projects of various programs.

But over the years through academic research and practical experience, we have evolved to specialize in the design and realization of projects within the leisure industry. Enjoyment is paramount in determining the success of our designs, from private holiday homes to restaurants, bars, hotels, and resorts. But it was also the driving force behind the recently completed designs of 2 larger-scale projects: a marina on the Turkish coast, and the refurbishment of Mykonos Airport.

We work collaboratively with highly experienced and knowledgeable teams to enrich and expand our services and results. Over time we have nurtured and continue to nurture our valued relationships with companies such as WATG, Tombazis & Associate Architects, Betaplan S.A., ISV Architects, and Lambs and Lions.

We have enjoyed working with and learning from the vastly experienced and knowledgeable teams of clients such as Four Seasons and O & O in Athens, and TEMES in the Peloponnese. We have also been invited to bring our contextual approach to international projects in destinations as varied as Israel, Qatar, Panama, and Kuala Lumpur.

Wherever we go our ethos remains the same: to build strong identities and architectural narratives that use the local context in balance with contemporary aspirations to elevate and enrich the user’s enjoyment.

The house had an intriguing and dynamic layout because it was constructed into the mountainside, with floors tumbling down the slope.
The house had an intriguing and dynamic layout because it was constructed into the mountainside, with floors tumbling down the slope.
Stone, wood, and metal can be used to give the house a rustic, natural appearance that blends with the surroundings.
Stone, wood, and metal can be used to give the house a rustic, natural appearance that blends with the surroundings.
With materials and design features that mimic the untamed beauty of the mountain, such a home is intended to blend perfectly into its surroundings.
With materials and design features that mimic the untamed beauty of the mountain, such a home is intended to blend perfectly into its surroundings.
A spectacular example of architecture that makes the most of its particular location and offers breathtaking views of the surroundings is a house that is perched on a mountain.
A spectacular example of architecture that makes the most of its particular location and offers breathtaking views of the surroundings is a house that is perched on a mountain.
Terraces and balconies were added to create outdoor living areas that benefited from the amazing views.
Terraces and balconies were added to create outdoor living areas that benefited from the amazing views.
The open, airy design has a simple look that blends well with the surrounding environment.
The open, airy design has a simple look that blends well with the surrounding environment.
The house's interior was created to maximize natural light.
The house’s interior was created to maximize natural light.
Has a lot of windows and skylights that let light into the living areas.
Has a lot of windows and skylights that let light into the living areas.
An unusual and stunning example of architecture is a home constructed on a mountain.
An unusual and stunning example of architecture is a home constructed on a mountain.
The positioning of designated areas for cooking, eating, and relaxing promotes coziness without compromising openness.
The positioning of designated areas for cooking, eating, and relaxing promotes coziness without compromising openness.
Making use of its natural surroundings to design a house that is both incredibly attractive and practical.
Making use of its natural surroundings to design a house that is both incredibly attractive and practical.
Large windows and glass walls are frequently used in architecture, providing stunning views of the valley and mountainside below.
Large windows and glass walls are frequently used in architecture, providing stunning views of the valley and mountainside below.
Large windows in the bathroom offer a secluded refuge with breathtaking views.
Large windows in the bathroom offer a secluded refuge with breathtaking views.
A gorgeous feature of a property can be an outdoor pool tucked away in the mountains, offering a tranquil and refreshing retreat surrounded by the wonders of nature.
A gorgeous feature of a property can be an outdoor pool tucked away in the mountains, offering a tranquil and refreshing retreat surrounded by the wonders of nature.
For a relaxing and opulent location for entertainment, there are lounge chairs in the seating area beside the pool.
For a relaxing and opulent location for entertainment, there are lounge chairs in the seating area beside the pool.
Native plants and trees have been used in the landscaping around the house to create a lush, natural backdrop for the pool.
Native plants and trees have been used in the landscaping around the house to create a lush, natural backdrop for the pool.
It showcases the unadulterated beauty of the mountainous scenery while offering a tranquil and rejuvenating respite from the worries of daily life.
It showcases the unadulterated beauty of the mountainous scenery while offering a tranquil and rejuvenating respite from the worries of daily life.

Summer in the Greek islands is all about being outside. The aim of the Plane House is to merge internal and external space, maximizing the benefits of both and minimizing the impact on the surrounding landscape. To avoid block volumes that split and dominate space, horizontal planes are inserted into the slope, immediately providing levels for sunbathing, sleeping, and eating, as well as vast, open area of shade.

They cool and shade the space beneath whilst allowing the flow of sunlight and maintaining the stunning 270-degree view over the coastline. Space between the planes is defined by various flexible panels and glazed screens. Designated cooking, eating, and relaxation zones are offset from each other to provide coziness without sacrificing openness.

The pool is strategically placed to enjoy the view but also to create a cooling breeze over the terrace and into the house as the north wind flows uphill and over its surface. Photovoltaic panels power the pool mechanics and grey water is recycled and used for irrigation, toilet flushing, and fire extinguishing. The landscape is respected and continues over the green roof plane creeps up along the site boundaries and penetrates vertically through the roof as existing trees stand in the space, undisturbed.

The powerful identity of the concrete planes creates a strong narrative on approaching the house from the coastal road that winds below. From a distance, the planes are distinctively separated but as you draw nearer and approach the house from the side, the perspective alters closing the gap between them. On arrival and on entering the space they part once more, opening to reveal the breathtaking view and let the fresh air flow through.

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