The Anthemion house, which opened its doors in August 2018, is located in the center of Kavala, right next to the iconic landmark of the Aqueduct. The hotel is housed in a three-storey building, originally built in 1927, owned by a Jewish tobacco merchant that has been renovated to reflect its architectural heritage, while imbuing a fresh breath of contemporary sophistication.
Designed by Normless Architecture Studio Photos by George Sfakianakis
The design team kept most of the original walls, adopting the seven rooms layout to the existing floor plans. The reception and the breakfast room are found on the ground floor, along with one of the five Anthemion studios. Sideways of the building, a small cozy patio was created for guests to enjoy on sunny days. The rest of the hotels rooms have been shared around the lobbies of the 1st and 2ndfloor.
The flooring on all three floors was replaced with natural oak laminate and geometric cement tiles. The architects chose two shades of blue and green, both in communal spaces and in the rooms creating colored sections in each space, highlighting either the ceiling, or one side of each room. With this technique, they managed to keep the design impact to the minimum, with no superfluous decorative elements, emphasizing to the building itself.
The original doors of the building were restored and used as the guest room doors, while new metal ones with bespoke brass and white knobs were designed for the communal spaces and each of the seven bathrooms.
Entering the building you find the imposing metal sliding door of the reception, nod to the geometries of the early twentieth century. The breakfast room upholds the same aesthetic with light oak timber chairs and tables combined with a vintage sideboard (which was part of the furnishing of the previous owner) that was painted in a deep green color adding a modern feel to it and complementing the brass lighting fixtures.
Inside the rooms, semicircular rattan headboards are mixed with wooden furniture, blue or green lacquered cupboards and brass details creating a light and cozy environment, marring tradition and modernity.
The Anthemion house finely balances between its original character and the requirements of a sophisticated traveler through an eclectic design.
