Raw concrete walls serve as a backdrop to vintage furnishings in this rentable venue and guest suite that Studio Andrew Trotter has created within a converted 1970s industrial building in Athens, Greece.
The six-storey warehouse, now named 10AM Lofts, features a multi-purpose event space spread over its basement and ground floor, which can host anything from exhibitions and dinners to photoshoots.
The penthouse, which spans the top two floors, can be used as part of these events or booked for private gatherings and longer-term residencies.
Both spaces were designed by Barcelona-based Studio Andrew Trotter with the help of local practice Gavalas Ioannidou Architecture, while a number of other designers have put their personal touch to the four lofts that are spread across the two remaining floors.
To make room for the event space, the two lowest floors were stripped back to their raw concrete shells.
To lighten up the ground floor, the studio inserted a couple of new windows, inlaid an entire wall with translucent glass bricks and painted surfaces white.
White paint was also used to finish the balustrade fronting the mezzanine-level workroom, which can be accessed via a set of spiralling concrete steps.
Guests must descend a twisted Corten-steel staircase to reach the basement, which has a markedly moodier ambience.
Apart from the illumination provided by a handful of pendant lamps, light can only trickle through to the space from the narrow openings left in the ceiling.
Vintage furnishings have been sparingly dotted throughout to soften the harsh industrial look of the space.
The penthouse, which is set over the building’s fifth and sixth floors, features surfaces rendered in lime plaster and paint rather than concrete to create what the studio describes as “a feeling of rough luxury”.
The fifth floor accommodates a cosy living room, furnished with a plump beige sofa and armchair as well as a weathered sideboard topped with a couple of antique vases and a marble bust.
Heavy sand-coloured linen curtains bring a sense of warmth to the natural light that filters in through the windows.
Close by lies the kitchen, centred on a wooden dining table and a set of Charlotte Perriand’s woven Dordogne chairs.
At this level of the penthouse, there is also a study and a bathroom with a huge blocky tub.
This sits beside expansive sliding glass doors that allow guests to enjoy unspoilt vistas of the Acropolis citadel while they soak.
Sweeping city views can also be enjoyed from the main bedroom up on the sixth floor, which is bookended by glass walls.
“[It’s] a haven of peace,” explained Studio Andrew Trotter. “In the heart of busy Athens, the space is cool and calm.”
The venue’s moody interiors stand in stark contrast to Villa Cardo, a bright white holiday home that Studio Andrew Trotter completed in 2019.
Nestled in an olive grove in Puglia, Italy, the four-bedroom residence is designed to resemble the region’s traditional cubic dwellings.
The photography is by Salva Lopez.
Source: Rooms - dezeen.com
