Color and memory

In Koukaki, just a few meters from the Acropolis, an 85 sq.m. apartment, dating from the 1960s was radically renovated to serve as the home of a film director. The aim of the design was to highlight the architectural identity of the old Athenian residence, with color employed as the central design tool.
From the outset, preserving the defining characteristics of the existing shell was established as a fundamental principle. The apartment’s generous clear height was fully maintained, avoiding suspended ceilings and concealed lighting systems, allowing the space to remain legible in its overall scale. At the same time, the intervention sought to avoid a standardized, neutral “modern” solution, instead shaping an interior conceived as a unified scenographic environment.
The floor plan was reconfigured through substantial interventions. A master bedroom with walk-in wardrobe and en suite bathroom was created, along with a second bedroom and an open-plan living– kitchen area, with particular emphasis placed on storage capacity and the functional clarity of uses.
During the restoration of the surfaces, later layers were removed, revealing the original terrazzo floors of the balcony, kitchen, and transitional areas, with their pink and yellowish tones. The wooden parquet flooring was carefully restored, while the kitchen was entirely redesigned in light blue hues. The separation between living room and kitchen is achieved through wooden, curved on top, frames, which operate as a gentle spatial filter between zones. Color is systematically employed as a means of
organizing and reading the individual spatial units: cobalt blue defines the bathroom, combined with a blue glass door that diffuses light into the entrance hall; in the master bedroom, yellow and earthy tones prevail, while handmade cement tiles reinforce references to Old Athens.
Existing furniture and lighting fixtures—family objects passed down through generations—were restored and reintegrated into the space, functioning as carriers of memory. Overall, the intervention forms a dwelling that balances preservation and contemporary reinterpretation, with respect for materials, the history of the neighborhood, and the artistic background of its use.