p r o j e c t s 1 9 8 5 - 1 9 9 5 |
A complex of four houses on a hill of suburb Athens. The inclination and the irregular shape of the site, and also the decision to “connect” the four small houses, become the generative parameters that drive the derivation of the proposed arrangement. |
An apartment complex of 50 houses, also including shops and a space for public activities. The complex occupies the empty lot of an old factory located in an industrial suburb of Athens. It is designed to operate as a network of houses and their circulation nodes, while the ground level remains open and accesible to the residents of the neighbourhood. |
a p a r t m e n t b u i l d i n g i n A t h e n s |
f o u r h o u s e s i n A t h e n s |
p u b l i c l i b r a r y i n A t h e n s |
An old factory, located in downtown Athens, was transformed to obtain a new use. The new program includes: a small public library, a shop, a cafe and a space for cultural activities and exhibitions. |
s u m m e r h o u s e i n A n t i p a r o s i s l a n d |
c o n v e n t |
This building was designed to accomodate a small community of monks in a remote area of central Greece. The convent is wedged on a concavity of a steep rock. Its wings enclose a protected courtyard, the center of which is occupied by the worship space. Under the courtyard, a sacred crypt, and a cistern is used to collect the rain water. |
w o r s h i p s p a c e |
The proposed worship space at the Hollywood hills, follows some of the compositional conventions of the early Christian churches. The form of the ground plan is based on a transformation of a cross. But, the bilateral symmetry of the traditional plan is not preserved. In the interior, the axis from the entrance to the altar is emphasized by two rows of columns. The higher part of the edifice is structured by curved forms that offer an appropriate surface for painting. The hierarchical-symbolic element of the dome is freely tranformed. |
t r u c k s t o p i n t h e m o j a v e d e s e r t |
Desert driving is normally done with gas, food, water, and accommodation available at intervals. Desert gas stations are remote places that can be reached usually every 60-70 miles. Most of the larger truck stops and settlements along the highways and freeways of the Mojave desert have cafes, small stores, and sometimes cheap motels. |
a d i g i t a l i n t e r a c t i v e w i n d o w t o t h e w o r l d |
A schematic design and planning proposal for the Rabin Square in Tel-Aviv, so as to turn it into an "International Peace Forum". The proposal involved the renovation of the existing square and the construction of a multimedia installation able to virtually “connect” the square through the internet with the rest of the world. 24 triangular prismatic glass towers are used for the purpose. Each tower is equiped with interactive media and access to the world wide web in order to present in an immediate way the state of war conflicts around the globe thus making the square a window to the world. |
The students identify the rooms and relate them through spatial relations. Then, compositional rules and a digital interpreter
are used to generate basic arrangements (partis) for possible designs. From each selected parti the students
develop several planlayouts and 3d models. The last part of the exercise is dedicated to the refinement of
selected layouts through the addition of details such as walls, windows, doors, stairs, etc.) |
a n e l e m e n t a r y e x e r c i s e o n f o r m a l c o m p o s i t i o n |
An exercise on housing was deemed ideal for introducing rule-based techniques to design students. The exercise was based on a low-cost housing competition sponsored by the Habitat For Humanity (HFH2002) in Boston. The HFH described the goal of the competition as: “the building of simple, decent, affordable houses”. |
The program called for adaptable types of 2, 3 and 4-bedroom houses without determining their square-footage. The houses include: a primary covered entrance, circulation, dining area and living areas, at least one full bathroom, kitchen and bedrooms. The organizers did not designate specific sites, but only possible ones. |
p u b l i s h i n g f i r m i n d o w n t o w n L o s A n g e l e s |
S i m m o n s H a l l s t u d e n t r e s i d e n c e a t M I T |
An office building for a publishing firm in downtown Los Angeles. The building program attempts to balance the public and the creative character of the firm. Private studios, conference rooms and offices but also spaces for public events are combined. The building is approached as a “box”. A second box, contained within the first, accommodates the core (creative) activities of the firm, while administration is placed on the sides. The ground floor is transformed into a public lobby, open to all kinds of activities, exhibitions etc. |
The architect Steven Holl and his team used the concept of porosity in designing a student residence at MIT. The building has 350 beds it is 10 storeys high, 330 feet long, and it includes a 125-seat theater and a café. This is an overview of how porosity was tectonicaly defined to give Simmons Hall its sponge-like morphology. The approach employs computational rules and grammars with explanatory and productive consequences: Explanatory because it makes the design concept explicit and productive because it converts an initial conceptual frame into rules that produce designs with specific spatial properties. |
S o t i r i o s D. K o t s o p o u l o s D i p l. A r c h - E n g M A r c h S M A r c h P h D |