Villa Melana at Tyros, Greece / Valia Foufa & Panos Papassotiriou

Studio 0-2 of Valia Foufa and Studio 2PiA by Panagiotis Papassotiriou join forces in the design of this award winning holiday villa in Arcadia Greece. 

 

 

Project description from the architects:

 

“It all started as a simple snapshot; At a very steep site with clear view towards the sea a holiday retreat protects its inhabitants from the sun heat and the strong winds while soothing the senses under the moonlight. We have placed the building at the only available naturally formed plateau of the site in order to avoid unnecessary groundworks that could spoil the relief.  

 

Simple elements to deal with a difficult and very unstable and steep terrain. The endless of the sea view and the enormity of the open horizon is overwhelming and therefore no great attempt is needed to frame the views.

The structure is defined by 3 volumes that are placed along the contour lines. The end product is a result of the division of a rectangular volume into 3 parts while staggering the middle part towards the east.This break is enhanced by the use of various materials and alteration of the design.

 

The main features of the central volume (where the day activities are hosted) are the cladding with local Arcadian stone – dry stone construction both internally and externally on concrete frame and brick infill -, pitched gabled roof with roofslates and the fireplace on the narrow end framing the view. The design has references to the local architecture (where the Tsakonian “Makrinaria” are met) incorporating changes to the form and size of the openings in order to achieve better results on the bioclimatic output and view. Floor to ceiling openings enhance the dual aspect feature without affecting the monolithic quality while the views cross on all sides. The staggering of the western wall from the outline of this volume creates a long and narrow circulation area under a flat parapet roof that connects all three volumes. 

 

Two white blocks are set back on either side of the main volume (where the bedrooms and wc’s are hosted) acting as reference to the minimalism and sincerity of our attempted architectural language away from heavy decorative features and overstatements. 

 

At the intersection of the three volumes two fair faced concrete beams act as “connectors” subtly underlining the junction of the 3 blocks. Finally, white render reflects the sun, the stone cladding offers its thermal mass connecting the building with the surroundings and together protect the inhabitants from the weather conditions. A configuration revealing the endless view to the horizon and was born out of consideration for the steep relief and the local traditional materials.”

 

Facts & Credits:
Location: Pera Melana, Tyros Arcadias, Greece
Architects: Valia Foufa & Panagiotis Papassotiriou
Structural engineering: Kratimenos Antonis
Mechanical engineering: Kabilis Nikos
Topographical survey: Bokolas Dimitrios, Koulos Evangelos
Civil engineer consultant: Taraviras George
Site area: 6.085 m2
Total gross area: 205 sq.m. (185 sq.m. main house, 47 sq.m. ancillary spaces)
Design date: 2012
Completion date: 2014 
Awards: 1st Prize ‘DOMES’ Awards 2015 

 

Architectural Aluminium Systems: Europa Profil Aluminium SA