breathing volumes
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client: georgios & petros theodoropoulos O.E

location: Kastri-N.Erithrea

architectural design: archivirus

date: 2009-present  

 

archivirus was commissioned by a construction company to design a typical three-storey block flat of five apartments at a suburban area of Athens.Τhe design should be based on simple ideas and construction methods. The main goal of the design was to eliminate as most as possible the disadvantages of a typical block flat in Greece like for example the single walls between different apartments – lack of air ventilation –small balconies – no views and no privacy. In order to avoid the single walls each floor was split in two different volumes each one with different floor plans connected between them just with the elevation unit. Two big voids in front and back of the elevation unit keep the two volumes separate. This idea also offered air ventilation from all around for both apartments on each floor. The second goal was to invent a way to offer the apartments more outdoor space and at the same time more privacy. In order to achieve that instead of repeating the same pattern for the second and third floor the two volumes switched position from left to right and via versa resulting the ceilings of the under volumes to become extra balconies of the upper ones while this juxtaposition also offered more privacy in order of views. Each typical floor volume was treated with different materials and colors to create also an obvious optical diversion between the apartments. As a result a three storey block flat with apartments breathing all around and having all the advantages of a single floor unit, has been created