‘Keli’ summer house in Kythnos by Polisgram Architects

The summer residence of 65 sq.m. in Kythnos has been designed following all the local building techniques and materials of the traditional “Keli”, which is the house where the shepherds used to live in the Island of Kythnos.

The half demolished stone building was rebuilt, using its original stone at a great extent, and converted into a two bedroom guest house acting as an extra space to the main house of the family that is located at the same site. The layout was designed based on the original typology and some of the significant architectural elements were preserved and enhanced, like the old stone fireplace and some recesses called “thirides” at the intermediate wall between the front bedroom and the bathroom. Some of the big stones were carefully extracted and reused in their original size in order to create an “extruded” feature wall at the back bedroom giving the cave feeling of the old “keli”. At the same time, the traditional building technique for the stone walls, called “kserolithia”, was combined with other local materials like cement paint, natural wood and stone floor plates, translated though in way to achieve a minimal and contemporary result. The patterned floor of the house, designed “in situ” and implemented plate by plate, incorporates geometric shapes some of which indicate movement within the residence, giving a fresh and playful alternative of the traditional stone plate floor.

Natural wood used for all the joinery intend to give more colour and continuity to the interior; combined with the cement paint, it creates the main volume of seating area, kitchenette and wardrobes at the front bedroom as a continuous and dynamic element within the space. Both bedrooms have access to independent outdoor space and all the windows have orientation to the main view to the sea. The exterior is designed in multiple levels, referring to the traditional “pezoules” but also adapting the natural inclination of the site. The outdoor space of the back bedroom is designed mostly as a rock garden, with integrated planters, herbs. A significant part of the existing rock was left at its original form. The outdoor space of the front bedroom is designed as a floating veranda overlooking the aegean sea. Overall the main design scope was to maintain the original character of a traditional stone building, making though an elegant contrast with minimal and contemporary elements, as well as keeping a flexibility to the use of the house.