Amazing Artistic and Unconventional Design Showcased by the NEW Hotel in Athens, Greece

An intricate display of colors, materials and textures, the NEW hotel was designed by Fernando and Humberto Campana in a city that needs no presentation: Athens, Greece. The vibrant accommodation unit is located 200 meters from Syntagma (Constitution) Square and awaits guests in an unconventional design setting. By reinventing the former Olympic Palace hotel (originally built in 1958 by architect Iasonas Rizos), a building with a more contemporary look and feel was born.

The Brazilian Duo Campana Brothers ignored all rules and limitation when it came to redesigning the hotel. By employing ancient Athenes motives and combining them with otherwise dull modern day objects, an artistic environment was created. With its 79 rooms, each displaying original eclectic decors, it is fair to say that the hotel is in for many guests and appraises. As the owners concluded, “the interiors are simply outstanding, the unusual custom-made furniture and handmade fixtures making guests feel that they live and breathe in a major art installation“.

Read More

Ordos Museum

Ordos Museum is located in the new city centre of Ordos. Driven by a booming economy, the Municipal Government of Ordos were determined to create a new city, dozens of kilometers away from the current city, on a site that until recently was nothing but the Gobi Desert. The urban masterplan drew on a symbolic image of “The ever rising sun on the grassland”: a rigid and precise series of urban landscapes radiating from a central plaza.

Chairman Mao once said: ‘only on a clean sheet of paper can the newest and most beautiful picture be drawn. ‘
On a tabular rasa, where the future holds great uncertainty, it is quite dangerous to design a building for the city center, where the urban grid is inferior and still exist only as a pattern due to its urban prematurity. The Ordos Museum needed a protective cover, where the interior is protected from the ‘city’. Inspired by Fuller’s Manhattan Dome, the Ordos Museum was designed to be the new irregular nucleus for the new town, to encourage the history and culture of Ordos to extend further into the future. The design of the museum was conceived as a reaction to this city plan. It takes the form of a natural, irregular nucleus in contrast with the strict geometry of the masterplan. The structure is enveloped in polished metal louvers to reflect and dissolve the planned surroundings. This shell will enclose a new interior, forming new public space for the people to come.

The interior is divided into several exhibition halls, defined by continuous curvilinear walls, all opening open onto the shared public space that runs through the museum. The glazed roof will draw light into this environment, which is then channeled through the building by the luminescent walls, whilst the louvers will allow natural ventilation. The bright, tranquil and fluid environment of this new space will offer visitors with designed environments for them to experience their culture and the space under the sun.

Read More

Amazing House With A Courtyard In Mendoza

This house is called Casa Codina and was created by A4estudio. It is located in Mendoza, Argentina. This project was made green, optimizing weather conditions. The house is built around a large central courtyard, the main spaces are opened for the larger garden. Public areas oriented to the north, private spaces oriented to the east and service areas - to the west. Everything in the house is made from the standpoint of natural ventilation and air mass moves due to the hot climate in Argentina. The structure houses built of concrete, wood aluminum and different boards. The wood is not used, it is called guatambu. Some walls can change their appearance according to the light.

Read More

Amazing Wood Love: Atmosphere of Unity Recreated in an Enchanting Apartment in Italy

You are about to enter a place dedicated entirely to wood. An enchanting apartment adorned with wooden details, making everything look cozy, managed to make an impression on us! With its simplicity and dedication towards smooth details, this cushy spot, designed by the Italian, Gianluca Fanetti, in Campodolcino ( a small municipality in the region of Lombardy, near Switzerland) is beautiful, elegant and most of all, romantic. A fireplace welcomes you in the living room. The landscape is absolutely amazing, especially in winter time.

This is one of those apartments that make you think of ski holidays. If you’re looking for a moment of relaxation, you ca definitely have it in this fresh and healthy environment. Due to the abundance of wooden details, the place exhales unity: floors, ceilings, even the furniture – everything is made of wood. At a first glance, one could be tempted to say “too much is too much”, but at a closer look you will see that there’s nothing wrong with “wood excess”. The designer came up with an interesting solution for the bedrooms. You get either the view or… the hight. The attic accommodates compact beds and make the place look more spacious than it actually is. How do you feel about this “wood love” ambience?

Read More

Amazing Pure Interior Design Eclecticism Inspired By Brazilian Culture

Studio ALBUS Design took our breath away with a project inspired by Brazilian culture. Gathered around 150 pounds of bananas celebrating artist Carmen Miranda’s influence on cultural diversity, a collection of carefully chosen decorative elements create a Latin-inspired home comfort. Encouraging this radical aesthetic innovation started by Carmen Miranda, the design created by architect Henrique Steyer and designer Felipe Rijo, of ALBUS Design was imagined to encompass the owners’ significant artwork and antiques collection – “the drawings by Djanira in the wall over the sofa share the space with a painting by Di Cavalcanti and the cocoon-shaped sculpture by Siron Franco” – as well as an interesting collection of feather art displayed throughout. Baroque saints and silver torches next to an antique mirror steal the spotlight once you got used to the bananas: “Yes, we have bananas!” That is how we sum up this project in Porto Alegre, southern Brazil. Inspired in the Brazilian culture and its many influences, this living room is an example of Brazil’s cultural diversity. Just as the Brazilian people is a result of miscegenation, the creation of this living was a search for the perfect mix. Henrique traveled with the home owner to New York, Miami and Rio de Janeiro, looking for an essentially latin harmony.”

Read More

Volumetric Dutch House Spectacular in Amsterdam

MARC Architects, from the Netherlands, have recently completed the Villa S2, a modern volumetric l project, in Amsterdam. With a beautiful lake view and a lounge area for precious moments of tranquility, the house is ideal for a young couple with small children, looking for a quiet and inspiring neighborhood. The house and the deck, raised above the ground, keep a sleek and polished look, thanks to the material used in defining them: white-lustrous marble. The door, the garage and a part of the upper windows are adorned with horizontal wood panels. This was a really smart solution for offering some privacy and also some extra sun protection.

The upper level is dedicated to the bedrooms while the main level accommodates the living room (with quite a spectacular view over the lake), surprising from a cozy and comfortable environment, subtle details of the neighborhood and the lush vegetation. An open space dining area connects the inhabitants with the pleasant, breezy site. In the hot summer season, the terrace baldaquin, together with the view create a perfect ambience for those perfect romantic evenings we all dream about. Beautiful and neat, the Villa S2 is a wonderful place, that emphasises the values of tranquility and of the stress-free environments.

Read More