Mosaico | Space is around us

In the upcoming neighborhood of Kypseli, a gradual revival of unused urban apartments dating back to the decades of the 60s and 70s is taking place. ‘Mosaico’ takes its name from the very first main memory we created on our first visit to the flat, its well crafted mosaics and parquet floors. Pointing out the virtuosity of the craftsmen of the era the block has been built, our intention as architects was to pay homage to craftsmanship and use this as a starting point for our design.

As part of an affordable renovation for a young professional we used the main colors of the floor mosaics to create a moodboard for our small yet crucial interventions. The original plan has been preserved due to its flexibility matching the unpredictability of today’s young habitants and their future needs. An entrance functioning as a filter and threshold for this 95 sqm apartment guides the user to a dining/working space which is flexibly merged with the living/library space with the old yet-of-timeless-functionality sliding wooden-glass doors. A second hall gives access to the most intimate areas of sleeping while at the same time connecting the most public spaces with the restroom and the kitchen.

Our proposal consists of bespoke furniture in the kitchen, restroom and bedrooms in colors matching the old mosaics and merging old with new, giving space for a public dialogue which could be focused on the re-use and revival of the old housing stock by young people, re-experiencing the city of Athens by redefining its housing opportunities. In the kitchen the original countertop and sink made of Dionysou marble have been kept developing the whole food preparation area around it. Desaturated orange and lilac color have been used for the kitchen cabinets and table tops inspired by the floor colors. A curvy custom table has revived a dark corner of the space smoothing out the acute angles of the kitchen at the same time. The same shape has been used on a smaller scale in some shelves and in the add-on handles. The restroom has been completely renovated proposing a unified solution with new-built short wall dividers and a counter covered in a minimal white tile reminiscent of the 70s small size square tiles and complemented with a desat orange seam matching the hall mosaic. In the two bedrooms the previous colors have been used for the built-in closets offering a distinctive identity to each of them.

The styling and decoration proposed followed the minimalistic and color-matching approach
of the architectural elements proposed.