Spolia house by NoDāta Architecture harmoniously merges traditional architecture with contemporary touches

On the Greek Island of Paros, NoDāta Architecture, have recently completed “Spolia House”, a Cycladic holiday home that harmoniously blends traditional architecture with contemporary touches. Situated at the heart of the traditional settlement of Parikia, the project offers a heavenly summer bolthole.

Taking cues from its neighboring Byzantine church of Ag. Marina and drawing inspiration from the temple typology and architecture, the residence applies marble inlays that preexisted on the site. The idea predominates in both interior and exterior design.

The exterior facade resembles the facade of the church, by using marble elements for the window sills and lintels. A custom made rain-gutter made out of marble slabs, clearly emphasize the leading role of marble in the overall composition.

“With a remaining building area capacity of 47sqm, the plot calls for a one-bedroom building program providing a shared courtyard”.

Making full use of the outdoor space, the structure forms an L-shape plan adjusted to the boundary of the plot arranging an open patio between the new frame and the border offering cross ventilation and sunlight to common spaces. The L-shape of the structure organizes the internal arrangement as well, with the kitchen area standing across from the sitting and lounge zone forming two opposing corners and a lively space in between.

Movement flows start from the courtyard, to the front entrance of the house, to the patio, and till the very end of the house, which is the bedroom and out to the courtyard again in a constant loop, for the grandchildren to occupy the space and chase each other in and outside the house.

“In the interior, the role of Spolia, beside the marble counter top, is depicted by the old furniture the client owned and the design studio reused in this project”.

A mostly neutral palette of whites and grays contradicts with the dark color of the old wooden furniture, on the one hand, and the vivid color of the lacquered kitchen cabinets on the other hand, creating an interesting dipole between the traditional and the contemporary.

Facts & Credits:

Project title: Spolia House, Typology: Holiday home, Location: Paros Island – Cyclades – Greece, Architectural and Interior Design: NoDāta Architecture, Design team (Architects): Christos Gourdoukis & Xenia Papastergiou, Project – Construction Management: NoDāta Architecture and Ioannis Vagias, Text description: NoDāta Architecture, Photography: Ioannis Loukis