Greece / RESORT
Differentiation is the all important feature.
— John Goldwyn
1 / CONTEXT
The Greek Islands have experienced an unprecedented growth as a tourist destination over the last decade. With its great weather-dependable climate and sheer range of different island destinations to choose from, its success has driven record investment from hotel and tour operators. It has become a ferociously competitive marketplace for hotel owners to operate in, geared towards all-inclusive deals and hotel experiences shaped around the lucrative “families with children” customer group.
In such a saturated brand space, differentiation is the all important feature. When every hotel has a stunning infinity pool and multiple dining options, the need to have an iconic, famous characteristic becomes even greater. The area where you can truly stand apart from your competitors and achieve that iconic “word of mouth” generating fame, is in the realm of the experiential.
In a tender where StudioWild15 was taking on much larger, well-established rivals, our success was almost certainly down to our ability to create something truly unique not only at a core thematic level, but also in multiple individual ways. It was this combination of holistic and granular originality that gave our client the belief we had designed something truly distinct.
2 / THE CONCEPT
We set up this studio to give ourselves the freedom to be genuinely creative and original; to create a culture in which boldness and experimental innovation are matched with world-class craft and technical expertise.
I personally wanted to build a studio which invites the pursuit of new forms of creative collaboration which I would never have been able to do elsewhere. This isn’t mere idealism in my mind. This was how a relatively small studio can outdo much larger rivals. We can win business not by being marginally better than the competition, but by presenting the indisputably unique and original.
In this case, we approached this project, not with a blank canvas to work from, but with a significant practical landscape design constraint - the need to work with the existing location of two large hexagonal swimming pools on different levels.
The entire resort is situated on a relatively steep incline sloping towards the beach from the main buildings. A typical solution would have been to create distinct levels accessible by steps and elevators for those with restricted mobility.
Inspiration can come from many unexpected sources, and on this occasion, the combination of Disneyland and the Berlin Reichstag Dome was ours! For many tourists visiting Germany’s rebuilt parliament, the ramp around the interior of the dome has emerged as the main experiential event of a visit. For us, the concept of mobility “becoming” the architecture, gave us the crucial design philosophy to start with.
We conceived of the idea of a parametric accessible ramp threading its way around the pools. By replacing the hexagonal pools with new circular designs, we gave their existence a dynamism previously lacking. We loved the idea that instead of the “normal” approach (levels and lifts), this would be a fully accessible catwalk for all, whether on foot, in pushchairs or wheelchairs. In collaboration with the architects Divercity, this was developed into a full, seamlessly integrated landscape and architecture concept called the Thread of Ariadne.
Once we had the core concept, we were able to bring in the Disneyland inspiration! This actually came from my own personal experience of queuing for rides with my family, and how Disneyland has ingeniously created brilliant sensory journey experiences for people as they move along in the sometimes very lengthy queues.
We took a similar approach to this “catwalk’ experience, filling it with multiple different “moments” and “happenings”, from hammocks in the trees, to unique seating spaces, and sensory gardens. By making a virtue of the ramp’s function, we were able to transcend the conventions of landscape or architectural design, and focus primarily on experience and journey.
"Working within an existing plan is where creativity is most challenging, and most rewarding."
3 / THE VISION
Creating uniqueness in the detail
Going into this competitive process, we knew that the core design concept was not the only consideration for our prospective clients. The ability to demonstrate how greatness could be achieved through the “marginal gains”, the small details that create as much of a differentiated guest experience as the overall aesthetic, would make our project submission stand out. These are just a few of the unique moments we included in our submission from a full grid of moments that we presented.
Special for every guest
That similar approach allowed us to enhance the uniqueness for the guest rooms. Each room would have its own uniquely designed outdoor space, with bespoke lighting design and planting that guests would walk through before emerging into the main garden.
Creating a community around books
Too many communal bookshelves are hidden away in an obscure corner of the hotel lobby which doesn’t invite much hanging around. It’s the polar opposite of how bookshops and libraries are designed and used in reality. We wanted this hotel library to become a social space, a place to enjoy reading in shade but also very much at the centre of the outdoor space, but more so, a space to talk and discuss the book you’ve just finished and the next one you’re considering.
Creating textural experiences
My regular collaborator Laura Morales and Tey have been able to demonstrate our ability to go the extra mile and create an opportunity for differentiation in the form of texture. Tey in particular, with her South-East Asian cultural heritage, has an exceptional sensitivity for detail and experiential beauty, and this was applied to our thinking on the texture of the outdoor furniture. As a result, we are creating bespoke elements for the hotel in the form of cushions, ground lamps and parasols, using natural colours and earth tones as consistent design elements. Each guest will be provided with little portable lanterns that can be taken out onto site, giving them a beautiful light to take with them and illuminate the space around the group, but also that can be easily charged overnight by hotel staff.
5 / SUSTAINABILITY
One of the most significant ways we can observe sustainability principles is simply by preserving, rather than the typical full rebuild act of destroying and then transporting to landfill. All the stone from the existing hexagonal pools is to be crushed, and re-used, along with marble from the old hotel room bathrooms, to create a terrazzo from it. The history of the previous incarnation therefore becomes an archaeological layer of the new landscape, rather than removed off-site. This goes beyond mere re-use to aesthetic upcycling.
6 / PROJECT STATUS
Currently in planning, due for construction next winter.