Aloni house by Deca architecture

The work of Deca architecture, a creative platform of young architects based in Athens, Greece, has received numerous international awards and distinctions, among which the Piranesi Award 2009.
The site where the Aloni house was built is on the north western tip of the Antiparos island, a natural saddle where two slopes meet. In the north –south axis the slope rises between two hills, while in the east-west the slope drops opening to the sea views. Two long stone walls bridge the hills allowing the house to nestle in the space within and then the earth and landscape to flow over it. This strategy blurs the edges of the house making its mass imperceptible within the broader skyline of the island. This stone bridge acquires a basic rural quality and the presence of the house is reveled only by four courtyards which are the organizing elements of the house, as they segregate the living spaces into five interiors areas, resulting in an arrangement that resembles the “five” side of a dice. In this way the house becomes both protected from the elements yet is full of natural light, generous views and a compact but rich relationship to its topography.

Julia Klimi