Creative space Terra

In an industrial building of Afidnes, the design aimed for a creative working environment that inspires the visitor and especially the user who is asked to create and materialise new ideas.
The interior office spaces occupy the ground floor of the building, with a surface area of 680m2 and respectively the exterior ones covering 900m2. The two spaces communicate via flowing water elements with bridges.
The concrete building shell in its austere character and oblong double-height space, with a design based on a sum of intersecting system of axes, acquires impressive plasticity and strong dynamics.
The design provides crooked path-lines and separating spaces that are dynamically enhanced by the use of different materials, unconventionally applied. Simultaneously, curved elements interact with sharp corners, setting a special balance.

The role of the water element, both inside and outside, is distinctive dominant, adding circulation, flow and reflection to the architectural composition. The main routes are reflected on the floor with different coloured strips of polymer-modified cement mortar that encounter strips of aged oak. The use of coarse and warm materials such as wood walls, patinated metal, shades of beige and black colour, along with the careful lighting, give the space a cozy and mysterious character.

Dominant architectural features include the roof in oblique shapes, creating zigzag recesses, which succeed the bare grid of exposed concrete, embracing the space and highlighting the prospect of routes.
Coloured ventilation shafts and other key E/M elements dominate the ceiling design, emphasising continuity and circulation. Spaces are separated by movable and fixed panels in wood or glass, enabling visual continuity and spatial flexibility.
Externally the building courtyard constitutes both a working and a relaxation space, and develops in different levels, reshaping the sloped ground. The stepped seating and selected greenery, as well as the water features with koi fish and water plants, compose a charming scenery.

awish architects – Fotis Kalliontzis