We have seen many luxury hotels on the world wide web so far, but nothing like this. Greek architect office K-STUDIO saw the beauty in the rusted walls of a derelict wine factory and transformed it into a fantastic seaside hotel on the western coast of the Peloponnese. Wow!
This may come as a surprise for many, but Greece was once a leading currant producer: from the 1830s on, the Greek were the largest suppliers of the European market for long decades. The Greek currant and grape producers even benefited from the Phylloxera epidemic of late 19th century: as a result of the calamity, the dwindling harvest was supplemented with fruit exported from Greek even in France. Things went south for the Greek around the 1890s: the producers had to do something with the large amounts of berries piling up as a result of the “Currant Crisis” with capital C (yes, that was a thing) at home.
Smaller and larger factories started to appear after one another on the Peloponnese with the purpose of processing currants. In the 1920s, currant processing halted, the factories emptied out and were abandoned.
The building complex currently known as Dexamenes (meaning “tanks”) hotel was one of these, however, thanks to the team of K-Studio, it received a completely new function. Not only did the designers aim for the preservation of values, it was also important for them to present the true beauty of the building.
Here, the genuine industrial milieu is not merely a stage. The hotel rooms were established in the two long blocks, part of which faces the open courtyard, while the other rooms open outward towards the sea. The vineyard and the zen-style pond gives the gigantic tanks of the factory a completely different vibe and look. The clean elegance injected into the dreary industrial environment creates a unique atmosphere, and the well-thought-out use of materials (concrete, timber, steel and engineered glass) reflects on the original function of the factory and contemporary trends at the same time.
Photos: Claus Brechenmacher & Reiner Bauman
Source: designboom.com
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