Dodekanesou House

Residence in Chania, Crete

Dodekanesou House is located in the historically working-class neighbourhood of Koum Kapi, Chania. The building is positioned between similar structures, leaving only a narrow facade facing a shared courtyard. Due to its compact floor plan, the building expands vertically. The project aimed to maximize the use of this limited space in order to create a two-bedroom home suitable for short-term rental.

A two-story staircase, located immediately upon entry, forms the central element of the design. It provides natural light to the ground floor and creates a sense of openness. The bedrooms are arranged across two levels, with integrated wardrobes and “dead” spaces efficiently interwoven to optimize the available area.

Lighting was a key consideration due to the limited number of windows, all of which are positioned on the upper floors. To address this, skylights and glass surfaces were incorporated to allow natural light to penetrate the ground floor.

The house is finished in a light ochre tone both inside and out, with select areas of exposed stonework. The upper floors and staircase are distinguished by a lightweight structure composed of bordeaux-painted steel and oak veneer. Additionally, some of the original tiles have been repurposed, and their patterns have been etched into selected wooden surfaces.

Team members Antonis Dysseakis, Nikos Fournaris
Structural engineer Pantelis Diakoumakis
EM study inDetail Architecture
Construction inDetail Architecture
Construction Oversight inDetail Architecture
Interior design inDetail Architecture
Lighting design inDetail Architecture
Photography Giorgos Anastasakis/SOUTH space for photography, Vasia Katramadaki
3D Visualization inDetail Architecture
Plot area 42,70 m²
Total area 69,60 m²
Design year 2015
Construction completed 2016

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