AS House

Tucked into the slope above the Messinian Gulf, this home was imagined as a quiet refuge more than a showpiece. We let the old olive terraces lead the way, stepping a series of low volumes along the contours so the house feels grown from the hillside rather than set on it. Arrival is simple and sheltered; a short turn and you’re out onto a sun-washed platform where the sea runs wide in front of you and Taygetos rises behind.

The architecture is pared back and tactile. Hand-worked stone and pale lime render catch the changing light; deep reveals and slim frames hold long bands of glass that frame the horizon like a drawing. Inside, built-in benches, timber joinery and cool, textured floors keep the palette calm and durable. A small water court, more trough than pool, sits in the wind’s lee, catching the sky by day and the glow of evening by night.

Comfort here comes from the way the building breathes. Thick walls store the day’s cool, cross-ventilation pulls air through shaded rooms, and pergolas stitch interior to exterior so life slips easily between the two. Rain is gathered, planting is drought-wise, and the wildness of the olive grove remains the true garden. Moving through the house is a gentle sequence, from narrow, quiet thresholds to broad terraces and long views, designed for slow mornings, salt-dusted afternoons and unhurried evenings when the sun sinks and the stone holds the last of the day’s warmth. It’s a house to live in lightly, with everything you need and nothing you don’t, held together by the simple pleasure of landscape, light and time.