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céleste boursier-mougenot turns bourse de commerce into immersive aquatic soundscape

an Immersive aquatic soundscape at THE Bourse de Commerce

 

The Rotunda of the Bourse de Commerce in Paris transforms into a mesmerizing aquatic and musical landscape with the unveiling of clinamen, an immersive installation by French artist Céleste Boursier-Mougenot. On view until September 21st, 2025, and curated by Emma Lavigne, General Director of the Pinault Collection, the large-scale project envelops visitors in a multisensory experience where porcelain bowls, water, and invisible currents form a delicate choreography of sound and movement. At the heart of the Rotunda lies an expansive basin, eighteen meters in diameter, filled with water. This vast, tranquil surface acts as a mirror, reflecting the Parisian sky visible through the museum’s iconic dome. White ceramic bowls drift across its surface, propelled by gentle currents, producing unpredictable melodic chimes as they serendipitously collide. 

 

While this is not the first iteration of clinamen—earlier versions have been staged at institutions including the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne, and the Centre Pompidou-Metz—it is the most ambitious to date. ‘This exceptional version of clinamen at the Bourse de Commerce doubles the size of the basin of the largest installations built to date,’ Céleste Boursier-Mougenot tells designboom. The museum’s architecture played a pivotal role. ‘My approach is largely based on taking into account the places and spaces where I am invited to present my work,’ the artist notes,‘I see the architecture of each new exhibition venue as a matrix into which the technical and aesthetic principles of the installation are cast, as if into a mould, resulting in a new version in situ.’ Encased by Tadao Ando’s concrete ring and capped by the monumental glass dome, the Rotunda offers a rare resonance.‘The immense rotunda, encircled by Tadao Ando’s cement casket, under the high glass roof, offers clinamen the opportunity to fully express its planispheric dimension,’ Boursier-Mougenot says.

Céleste Boursier-Mougenot, clinamen v.10, 2012-2025 | all images courtesy of Bourse de Commerce—Pinault Collection, unless stated otherwise

 

 

embracing unpredictability within the clinamen installation

 

Like many of Céleste Boursier-Mougenot’s works, the Bourse de Commerce installation exists at the intersection of sound, sculpture, and performance. It also marks the culmination of decades of experimentation with sonic systems that operate independently of human control. A musician by origin, Boursier-Mougenot approaches sound as a ‘living material’—as seen in clinamen, where the traditional constraints of music are shed, replaced by a self-regulating system that breathes and changes with each passing moment. ‘My systems of sound or musical production are modeled or inspired by living, self-regulating forms like organisms,’ the artist explains. 

 

The title clinamen comes from Epicurean physics and refers to the random, unpredictable motion of atoms. For Boursier-Mougenot, this idea mirrors the elemental operations at play in the installation. ‘The analogy between my work entitled clinamen and the phenomenon of clinamen described by Lucretius in De rerum natura also concerned the notion of declination in the combinatorial sense and the question of exhausting the possibilities of encounter, occurrence and permutation,’ the artist says. He sees the installation as ‘a kind of model, a fairly schematic example, in which all these interactions take place before our eyes and for our ears.’ The inherent unpredictability is central to the experience: ‘if in the moment before two porcelain bowls collide you try to anticipate the resulting note or timbre, most of the time your expectation will be foiled by the sound of the collision.’

clinamen takes over the iconic Rotunda of the Bourse de Commerce

 

 

enveloping visitors in a multisensory experience

 

Boursier-Mougenot deliberately embraces unpredictability in his creative process, a practice he discovered when allowing external sounds to enrich his compositions. This openness led him to ‘think about the production of music based on self-regulating systems. These systems generate musical forms over which I have no control over the order of inputs, but the result is very important to me.’ This philosophy informs the entire structure of clinamen, which runs on a self-regulating system akin to a living organism. The materials, too, are deliberately fragile and mutable. Porcelain, water, sound. ‘It was while playing in my studio with everything needed to produce a catastrophe […] that this work took shape, almost thirty years ago,’ he recalls. Clinamen beautifully embodies a tension between apparent opposites: order and chaos, stillness and movement, silence and sound. The artist’s previous work, harmonichaos, which involved vacuum cleaners playing harmonicas, explored similar themes of unpredictable, self-regulating systems. ‘With harmonichaos, it’s impossible to predict when each of the thirteen vacuum cleaners will work or stop, nor the duration of silences or chords played and held by one vacuum cleaner/harmonica module or another,’ he shares, highlighting the interplay of chance and inherent system logic.

 

In a culture defined by acceleration and distraction, clinamen invites a radical slowing down. Visitors become part of the installation simply by being present. ‘With my installations, I make it clear to everyone who visits that they can find a place within the work and become an integral part of it momentarily by their mere presence,’ he says. ‘The simple fact of inviting people to sit down and rest induces attitudes conducive to listening and daydreaming.’ Ultimately, clinamen is not only a meditation on matter, motion, and sound, but a quietly profound call to attention. ‘I don’t believe my art can change anything in the madness of today’s world,’ Boursier-Mougenot admits, ‘but since I’m invited to present my work, I bring the best I have.’ Read our conversation with the artist in full below.

porcelain bowls, water, and invisible currents form a delicate choreography of sound and movement

 

 

INTERVIEW WITH Céleste Boursier-Mougenot

 

designboom (DB): How did the architecture of the Rotunda in the Bourse de Commerce shape this version of the clinamen?

 

Céleste Boursier-Mougenot (CBM): My approach is largely based on taking into account the places and spaces where I am invited to present my work. I see the architecture of each new exhibition venue as a matrix into which the technical and aesthetic principles of the installation are cast, as if into a mould, resulting in a new version in situ. In this way, many of the installation’s parameters can be redefined by the characteristics and particularities of the venue. At the Bourse de Commerce, the immense rotunda, encircled by Tadao Ando’s cement casket, under the high glass roof, offers clinamen the opportunity to fully express its planispheric dimension.

 

DB: The immersive installation has been shown before, but never at this scale. What new possibilities—or challenges—did this larger format bring?

 

CBM: You’re right, this exceptional version of clinamen at the Bourse de Commerce doubles the size of the basin of the largest installations built to date. At this stage, no one can say for sure whether everything will work as usual on this scale. It’s a challenge, with a multitude of technical issues to resolve in order to remain faithful to the work and its simplicity. To achieve this, I’m working with a team of excellent technicians, and it’s only at the time of the tests that we’ll know if everything is working. So it’s quite experimental, as I think any attempt at art should be.

DB: The title clinamen refers to the random motion of atoms in Epicurean physics. How does this idea connect to the movement and behavior of the installation?

 

CBM: Clinamen, this word and its definition came to me in the summer of 1997, as I was leafing through the pages of a dictionary. I was looking for a title for my new installation that would describe the principle of the work. I had the word declination in mind and was looking for a synonym here and there. The cosmic connotations of clinamen immediately captivated me and I found many analogies between the phenomenon it describes and my work in progress. So I adopted the title. Shortly afterwards, in view of the installation’s appearance, the title clinamen seemed a little pretentious, and for the work’s first exhibition I called it untitled. In the years that followed, untitled enjoyed great success in France and abroad in many different versions. Around 2003, production of the inflatable swimming pool model I had been using came to an abrupt halt. I had to design my installations with floating porcelain by having raised floors made into which one or more round pools could be integrated. Later, for exhibitions in vast spaces without walls, the raised floor took the form of a platform with access ramps and surrounded by circular benches, virtually acting as walls. As versions of the installation became larger and more planispheric, I decided in 2012 to rename the largest of them clinamen.

 

The analogy between my work entitled clinamen and the phenomenon of clinamen described by Lucretius in De rerum natura also concerned the notion of declination in the combinatorial sense and the question of exhausting the possibilities of encounter, occurrence and permutation. For materialists, the clinamen is the minimum angle that leads atoms, those inseparable and eternal particles, to collide and assemble to produce, by aggregation, all the perishable matter of our world, which constantly disintegrates and reformates : atoms are to matter what the letters of the alphabet are to language and writing, and it is from the variety of their combination that everything exists. In my work, there is also a curved movement that leads the cells represented by the porcelain bowls to collide, producing a world of sounds and potentially all the occurrences of the elements present. We can contemplate clinamen installation as a kind of model, a fairly schematic example, in which all these interactions take place before our eyes and for our ears. But if you try to trace the causal thread of a sequence, it’s impossible to do it live. In other words, if in the moment before two porcelain bowls collide you try to anticipate the resulting note or timbre, most of the time your expectation will be foiled by the sound of the collision.

image © designboom

 

 

DB: The piece is guided by invisible currents, where ceramic bowls create sound through chance encounters. How do you work with unpredictability as part of your creative process?

 

CBM: I discovered the virtues of unpredictability for my music the day I accepted that outside sounds, totally unrelated to my own, such as those of the urban environment of the unspoilt place where I was producing my music, could mix with it and enrich it. Later, during a play by the company whose music I was composing, which was being staged on the roof of a campus building, the sounds of cars in the distance or the sound of the wind could be heard. The sounds of cars in the distance or voices, wind, planes passing in the sky and crows flying overhead mixed with my music for a noisy string quartet and reanimated it. It was all a question of sound levels and permanence of course, but it gave a “here and now” quality to my recorded and broadcast music. Later, I often used microphones to pick up sounds live outside theatres, reinjecting them and mixing them with my music. These experiences opened my ears and gradually led me to think about the production of music based on self-regulating systems. These systems generate musical forms over which I have no control over the order of inputs, but the result is very important to me.

ceramic bowls drift across the water surface, propelled by gentle currents

 

 

DB: Your choice of materials—porcelain bowls, water, currents—feels deliberately elemental. What draws you to these fragile, mutable mediums?

 

CBM: One day, Jack, a friend of mine who’s a piano maker, said to me: the piano is a collection of different materials – metal, wood, felt, glue, etc. – which can be dangerous to each other, and which are also subject to phenomenal mechanical tensions capable of destroying them. Fortunately, the ingenious arrangement of these materials results in an almost living object that only awaits the tension of the pianist’s nervous system to become the alter ego of the player.
For my part, it was while playing in my studio with everything needed to produce a catastrophe (inflatable pool, soft plastic, glass, porcelain, water, pump, electricity, heating element, etc.) that this work took shape, almost thirty years ago. In the field of art and installation, any object can be considered according to criteria that no longer have anything to do with its functionality.

image © designboom

 

 

DB: You’ve described sound as a ‘living material.’ How do you approach sound, not just as music, but as something sculptural, spatial, and physical ?

CBM: Rather, my systems of sound or musical production are modeled or inspired by living, self-regulating forms like organisms. As I relate with the harmonicaos work and the use of tuners immersed in a form of hesitation or doubt that I notice and exploit to thwart forms of off-putting repetition.

 

DB: There’s a tension in clinamen—between order and chaos, stillness and movement, silence and sound. How do you see these opposites coexisting in your work ?

 

It’s funny, towards the end of the nineties, I called an installation harmonichaos. It consists of thirteen silent vacuum cleaners, each of which plays a small diatonic harmonica, whose tonality, or tuning of the vacuumed notes, is different from the twelve other harmonicas. The operation and shutdown of each vacuum/harmonica module depends on a frequency analyzer built into the module. This is a chromatic tuner used by musicians to tune their instruments. It accurately identifies the sound frequency of a single note at a time, but its analysis becomes more than uncertain as soon as the device detects several notes or a chord simultaneously. The device reacts to surrounding sounds, hesitates, contradicts itself …
Observing this, I thought that a logic other than the one for which the device had been designed was at work, because the time division seemed “alive” to me. It was only a short step from there to imagining a specific form of life. I used the device because of its unreliability. With harmonichaos, it’s impossible to predict when each of the thirteen vacuum cleaners will work or stop, nor the duration of silences or chords played and held by one vacuum cleaner/harmonica module or another. Each module interacts with the twelve others in the ensemble ad libitum. What’s more, this low-tech system is disrupted by variations in the voltage of the electrical network feeding it, making any attempt at prediction even more highly improbable.

image © designboom

 

 

DB: Your installations often invite the audience into a sensory, open-ended experience. What role does the visitor play in activating or completing the work?

 

CBM: When you visit an exhibition, aren’t you yourself sensitive to the presence of other visitors? If they give you the impression of not knowing why they’re there? It can be funny, but it can also be pathetic. If they only look at the works through their cameras or smartphones, and step back without paying attention to the other visitors to frame a masterpiece, I think that’s awful. With my installations, I make it clear to everyone who visits that they can find a place within the work and become an integral part of it momentarily by their mere presence. When I succeed in doing this, I find it makes people more beautiful… I’ve also noticed that when I compose the spaces of my installations using circles or curves, it makes visitors’ trajectories more harmonious and their wandering more fluid than in orthogonal spaces. The simple fact of inviting people to sit down and rest induces attitudes conducive to listening and daydreaming.

 

DB: In an age of speed and distraction, how do you see your work offering space for slowness, attention, and contemplation?

 

CBM: I don’t believe my art can change anything in the madness of today’s world, I don’t presume to know what anyone needs, but since I’m invited to present my work, I bring the best I have.

project info:

 

name: clinamen

artist: Céleste Boursier-Mougenot | @celesteboursiermougenot

curator: Emma Lavigne, Chief Curator and General Director of the Pinault Collection

location: Bourse de Commerce — Pinault Collection, 2 rue de Viarmes, 75001, Paris, France | @boursedecommerce

dates: June 5th – September 21st, 2025

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can an interactive game provide drug-free pain relief? researchers think so

meet painwaive, an Interactive game that doubles as pain reliever

 

Researchers at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, have run their first trial of an interactive game that trains people to change their brain waves and relieve their pain without using any drugs. Named PainWave, the video game aims to alleviate people’s chronic and nerve pain. It’s a neurofeedback system, which means it uses people’s brain’s activity to help them learn to control it. It is basically a game where their brain is the controller and they are the player at the same time. The system has two main parts: a 3D printed headset and the interactive game that acts as a pain reliever, played on a tablet.

 

The 3D printed headset picks up the user’s electrical signals called brainwaves. The device then sends the brainwave information to the app as the user plays, and the app translates the data into visuals researchers or personnel can see on the tablet. As an example, the water in the under-the-sea interactive game slash drug-free pain reliever can change color when the user starts to feel calm. In this way, researchers can see how people’s brain activity changes as they play. With these changes, the researchers find out that the brain can produce certain patterns that, over time, alter the brain activity and help them feel less pain without using any drugs.

all images courtesy of University of New South Wales | photo by Elva Darnell

 

 

3D printed headset uses water-based system for signals

 

The first small study of PainWaive has shown the researchers – coming from the University of New South Wales, the University of Technology Sydney, Charles Sturt University, the University of South Australia, and the University of Washington – positive results. In their trial, four people used the system, and their pain levels were tracked for four weeks. Three out of the four participants reported a major decrease in their pain, especially towards the end of the treatment. The pain relief they experienced was similar to, or even better than, as the researchers describe, what some people get from strong pain medications like opioids. The research team could also keep an eye on how participants were doing remotely.

 

By using a 3D printer, the researchers are able to cut the production price of the wearable VR-like headset. They’ve also designed almost everything themselves, including the computer board inside the device. The headset uses a special water-based system to get clearer brain signals, specifically from the sensorimotor cortex. It is the part of the brain that handles movement and touch, and it’s involved in how people experience pain. Because it is 3D printed, the headset is also lightweight, so it’s comfortable for the users to wear them for a long time. So far, the researchers are preparing for a larger study with 224 people who have nerve pain due to spinal cord injuries. Their next goal is to bring the interactive game closer to becoming a widely available option as a drug-free pain reliever. 

the 3D printed headset picks up the user’s electrical signals

the interactive game trains people to change their brain waves to relieve their pain without using any drugs

the game has an underwater-based setting

previously, the researchers have already developed another game-based research under Project Avatar

in Project Avatar, a simulated game aims to treat pain from spinal cord injury

 

video showcasing Project Avatar

 

 

project info:

 

name: PainWaive

institutions: University of New South Wales, University of Technology Sydney, Charles Sturt University, University of South Australia, University of Washington | @unsw, @utsengage, @charlessturtuni, @universitysa, @uofwa

researchers: Negin Hesam-Shariati, Lara Alexander, Fiona Stapleton, Toby Newton-John, Chin-Teng Lin, Pauline Zahara, Kevin Yi Chen, Sebastian Restrepo, Ian W. Skinner, James H. McAuley, G. Lorimer Moseley, Mark P. Jensen, Sylvia M. Gustin

study: here

The post can an interactive game provide drug-free pain relief? researchers think so appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

biophilic parametric structures by aidia studio shape civic park in mexican jungle

aidia studio brings parametric structures to mexican jungle

 

Tucked into the subtropical jungle of Chetumal, Mexico, Parque Quintana Roo by AIDIA STUDIO transforms a once seasonal fairground into a year-round civic landscape for sports, culture, and community life. Spanning 10 hectares, the government-funded masterplan reimagines the annual fairgrounds of the region through a biophilic and parametric design lens, featuring a 1,000-seat arena, stream-like pedestrian pathways, and a constellation of circular structures. From ceiba-lined civic squares to skate parks and origami-roofed courts, the project softens the rigid edges of the site with a network of arcs and tangent connections, inviting fluid movement and a non-hierarchical experience through space.

 

All structures are finished in pale surfaces that reflect sunlight and mitigate heat, while slender olive-green metal columns and undulating timber details echo the surrounding forest. Each roof, many modeled after hyperbolic paraboloids, responds to tropical weather conditions, offering protection from heavy rainfall while maintaining natural airflow. Instead of solid facades, the buildings use brick screens and open walls, encouraging cross-ventilation and maintaining a dialogue with the outdoors.

Parque Quintana Roo transforms a traditional fairground into a vibrant urban park | all images by Andrés Cedillo

 

 

year-round infrastructure composes Parque Quintana Roo

 

The Parque Quintana Roo project originated as a response to the growing demand for more permanent infrastructure for Chetumal’s annual fair. This event evolved beyond its temporary roots to include concerts, rides, craft markets, and civic gatherings. Rather than proposing isolated buildings, London- and Mexico-based AIDIA STUDIO envisioned a coherent public realm that could host both everyday activities and large-scale festivities. A trapezoidal site measuring 200 by 400 meters, with only one formal entry point, posed initial access challenges. The architects addressed this by developing a road circuit that loops around the park, embedding running and cycling tracks into its perimeter, and distributing access to various venues from multiple points.

all materials used in the plazas and buildings harmonize with the area’s natural limestone

 

 

a biophilic parkland of arenas, pavilions, and civic spaces

 

At the core of the masterplan is a spatial language of circles and arcs, where each venue, from the retail pavilions to sports facilities, adopts a circular footprint and connects to others via tangent curves. This layout, driven by parametric tools and biophilic principles, allows the park to feel like a continuous terrain. The centerpiece is a 1,000-person arena that emerges as a sculptural terminus to the journey through the park. Along the way, visitors encounter spaces like the civic square framed by eleven ancestral ceiba trees, a multipurpose pavilion, a skate park, playgrounds, calisthenics areas, and covered basketball courts whose wide-span roofs draw from origami forms.

 

Crucially, the low density and modular construction strategy of Parque Quintana Roo were intentional, aiming to preserve green cover and to ensure cost-effective implementation. AIDIA STUDIO’s bottom-up approach prioritized the user’s experience of nature: whether cycling under a canopy of trees, discovering civic life at the heart of the ceiba grove, or skating through sun-dappled clearings.

various building typologies were developed tailored to the specific functions of the buildings

tiled hyperbolic paraboloid roofs offer protection against heavy rainfall

 

retail shops activate the park

lightweight metal frameworks introduce a playful twist

olive-green columns and undulating wooden accents integrate with the surrounding forest

a distinctive roof inspired by origami folds tops the basketball courts

each building focuses on the user’s experience of nature within the park

 

 

project info:

 

name: Parque Quintana Roo
architect: AIDIA STUDIO | @aidiastudio

location: Chetumal, Quintana Roo, Mexico

plot area: 214,471.67 square meters
construction area: 39,645.78 square meters

 

client: SEDATU
lead architects: Rolando Rodriguez Leal, Natalia Wrzask
project coordination: José Luis Mulás
project team: Mariano González, Nitze Magaña, Aranzazú Sánchez, Mauricio Santibañez, Cecilia Simón, Emilio Vásquez, Rodrigo Wulf
structural engineering: Project & Calc
photographer: Andrés Cedillo | @pavelin

 

 

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

 

edited by: thomai tsimpou | designboom

The post biophilic parametric structures by aidia studio shape civic park in mexican jungle appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

designboom steps inside aristides dallas architects’ athens studio, where context shapes form

designboom visits Aristides Dallas architects’ Athens studio

 

Situated in central Athens, Aristides Dallas Architects operates as a bridge between the raw landscapes of the Greek islands and the dense urban fabric of the city. Founded in 2014 on the island of Tinos, the studio laid its conceptual foundation there, but it was through its subsequent expansion in Athens that it evolved into a design powerhouse working across various scales, from Pnoes hotel, to Lap Pool House residence. Each project materializes through a unique approach that balances between a deep contextual sensitivity and the bold geometrical forms the studio is known for. ‘A building should feel like an extension of its surroundings rather than a foreign object placed on top of it,’ founder Aristides Dallas tells designboom as he welcomes us into his multi-level studio in the heart of Exarcheia.

 

Dallas embraces the contrasts between the studio’s dual presence in Athens and Tinos, drawing inspiration from wild Cycladic terrains as much as from the layered, ever-evolving history of the capital.‘Having one foot in each world constantly shifts my perspective,’ he explains. ‘The city is about negotiating with the built environment, while the islands are about negotiating with nature itself.’ It’s this fluidity between the two that defines the architectural approach of his firm, one that is deeply rooted in place yet unafraid of contemporary expression. Read on as we take a deep dive into the world of Aristides Dallas Architects, the studio’s design philosophy, creative process, and what lies ahead for the firm.

Villa V in Corfu | rendering © Katerina Iakovaki, image courtesy of Aristides Dallas Architects | read more about the project here

 

 

inspiration through observation

 

Aristides Dallas Architects is driven by the ambition to contribute meaningfully to the evolution of contemporary Greek architecture. Structured as a multidisciplinary team, the firm brings together engineers, material scientists, interior designers, stylists, and artists to create projects that are both technically and conceptually rigorous. For Aristides Dallas, inspiration often comes from the unfiltered elements of a place rather than existing architecture. ‘When I walk through Tinos, I see rocks scattered in the fields, stones that have been shaped by time and weather, and I think—how would it be if this became a building?’ he shares with designboom. One evening, while passing through the Tinos port, he noticed large concrete blocks stacked along the waterfront. That moment sparked a concept for a residential project in Crete. ‘You find ideas everywhere—sometimes in the wildness of nature, other times in the built environment.’

 

This constant oscillation between city and landscape pushes the firm’s design ethos forward. ‘It’s not about copying nature—it’s about understanding its principles and translating them into architecture,’ he reflects. ‘The structured city demands engagement with history and context, while the islands challenge you to respond to the natural terrain. The balance between the two is what makes our work unique.’ 

The Lap Pool House | image courtesy of Aristides Dallas Architects | read more about the project here

 

 

interview WITH FOUNDER Aristides Dallas

 

designboom (DB): Can you tell us more about your background, and when did you found Aristides Dallas Architects? How has the studio evolved since then?

 

Aristeides Dallas (AD): Architecture has been a central force in my life since my early years. Even during my studies, I was deeply committed to developing a personal voice in architecture, participating in international competitions and working long hours to support myself. I wasn’t waiting for the right moment to appear, I was actively shaping it. My creative foundation was laid during that demanding period, long before I ever opened an office. What later followed was the natural outcome of persistence and vision.

 

When I decided to establish AD Architects, it was not a matter of convenience—it was a matter of integrity. I moved to the island of Tinos in 2014, where I launched the practice with a clear direction: to undertake only projects I truly believed in. This deliberate selectiveness attracted clients from abroad, who recognized value in our approach. Our first design project, VOLAX, opened the way, followed soon by projects in Mykonos, particularly in the hospitality sector. But the true expansion began with our move to Athens in 2018. Casa Leone, our first project in the city, felt symbolically placed, as it happened to be on Tinos Street in Agia Paraskevi. Since then, we’ve grown steadily and now operate a fully integrated studio in Exarcheia, Athens. This is where our team, our processes, and our reach evolved on a national scale.

wood finishes complement the black and white tones | image by Mariana Bisti

 

 

DB: The studio has offices in both Athens and Tinos. How do these locations influence your work and creative process?

 

AD: Having a presence in both Athens and Tinos is a significant advantage, as it constantly shifts my references and sources of inspiration. Spending part of the year immersed in the Cycladic landscape completely changes my perspective. The contrast between Athens and Tinos is literally a creative engine. In the city, I engage with dense urban fabric, layered history, and evolving cultural expectations. On the islands, I’m in constant dialogue with nature, topography, and silence. It’s not about preferring one over the other, but about allowing each context to inform the other. This dual lens lets us approach each project without clichés. Athens sharpens our logic, while the islands refine our intuition. When walking through Tinos, the raw beauty of rocks, light, and wind patterns often spark abstract ideas that later return to the city as spatial strategies.

 

I remember one night, walking home from the office past the port, where large concrete blocks were stacked. That moment sparked the concept for a project in Crete. For me, inspiration often comes from the raw landscape, from the unfiltered elements of a place rather than its existing architecture. When designing in urban Athens, we must engage with the built environment, but on the islands, the only real context is nature. This duality, the structured city and the wild landscape, keeps our work dynamic.

displaying architecture books and models on warm wooden shelving | image by Kirill Samarits

 

DB: Given your high focus on residential and hospitality projects, can you tell us more about your philosophy on ‘living’ and ‘dwelling’, and how it shapes your designs?

 

AD: Designing a home is both one of the simplest and most complex challenges. Every client comes in with a strong vision of how their house should be. In some ways, it’s even more challenging than designing a hotel—hotels follow clear functional guidelines, while homes are deeply personal. Each house we design must be entirely unique because every person is different. This means we are constantly reinventing the wheel. Some clients say, ‘I have a lot of experience with houses, I’ve lived in them all my life.’ And they’re not wrong; they understand what makes them feel comfortable.

 

I often liken it to acting—slipping into character, understanding the emotional world of the person who will inhabit the space. It’s less about ‘solving a brief’ and more about narrating a life. Homes are always personal. Hotels, by contrast, operate with clarity of function—but we try to inject narrative even there. Designing in architecture is deeply psychological. It requires empathy, curiosity, and the ability to suspend one’s own habits to fully embody someone else’s experience. This is why I believe architecture isn’t just about creating forms, it’s about crafting experiences.

A Touch of New | image courtesy of Aristides Dallas Architects | read more about the project here

 

 

DB: Your projects are often characterized by distinct geometric forms, clear and bold material choices, and yet, somehow, a very organic and harmonious coexistence with their surrounding landscape. Where do you draw inspiration from when it comes to forms and shapes? How do you balance organic integration with bold geometry? What materials do you prefer to work with, and how do they contribute to the identity of your buildings?

 

AD: We always begin with the site. We study how light travels, how winds circulate, how the terrain flows. Every project begins with such an in-depth study of the landscape. Each location provides different clues that guide our design. Balancing bold geometry with organic integration comes down to three key elements: materials, scale, and placement. If a form is too assertive, we tune it back—not to hide it, but to ground it. Choosing materials that reflect the surrounding colors and textures also plays a crucial role. Throughout our projects we’ve found inspiration in everything from cracked mud to volcanic movement or even the momentary architecture of sand towers built by children.

 

For instance, in the project Tectonic Lodging, we were inspired by the way dried mud cracks, leading us to design a building that feels as if the earth has fractured open to create space. In Santorini, for the Monolithic Village hotel we studied how sand towers form when children play on the beach, which inspired us to experiment with a single material wrapping the entire structure. The inspiration came by observing the way volcanic lava spreads and used that to inform a monolithic design with a singular material palette. It’s not about replicating nature. It’s about understanding its principles, trying to read it, like a language, and interpret it into space.

Pnoes | image courtesy of Aristides Dallas Architects | read more about the project here

 

 

DB: Is there a unifying element, or series of elements, that define the identity of Aristides Dallas Architects?

 

AD: I don’t subscribe to a fixed architectural style that applies across different projects. Instead, our approach is about continuously rediscovering architecture through the unique demands of each site, program, and client. What ties our projects together is not a specific aesthetic but the process—how we engage with context, materials, and form. Each project is a synthesis of landscape, place, and people.

 

We analyze the topography, local history, climate, and how people will interact with the space. Some projects are inspired by the way wind carves rock formations, while others take clues from historical building techniques or the natural flow of movement. Rather than imposing a predefined aesthetic, we allow the site and its constraints to shape the form. The goal is not to create buildings that are immediately recognizable but to design architecture that feels inevitable, as if it has always belonged to the landscape. We ask: what makes sense here? What forms arise naturally from this place, not despite it? 

 

We aim for an architecture that feels like it belongs, as if it emerged rather than was placed. In that sense, our philosophy is to use architecture as a social instrument to shape places with empathy, clarity, and care. We believe that buildings must serve people first—and in doing so, they reveal their most honest beauty.

The Lap Pool House | image courtesy of Aristides Dallas Architects

 

 

DB: Given the special conditions and unique character of the places you are often designing for, do you engage in collaborations with local craftspeople to bring your projects to fruition? How important is collaboration for you, both within and outside of the studio?

 

AD: Absolutely. Collaboration is fundamental—not just within our office but throughout the entire construction process. Our studio brings together architects, engineers, material researchers, designers, and stylists. But just as importantly, we engage deeply with local craftspeople. We see artisanal knowledge as a living layer in our architecture. Whether it’s stone masonry, woodworking, or metal detailing, these collaborations enrich the project with depth and soul. We work closely with artisans skilled in traditional techniques, ensuring that each project respects and evolves from local craftsmanship.

 

Working with craftspeople who are truly passionate about their craft makes all the difference. A skilled artisan doesn’t just execute a design—they refine it, paying attention to every detail.

 

DB: Can you walk us through the typical design process at Aristides Dallas Architects—from initial concept to final execution?

 

AD: Our process starts long before we draw the first line. We begin with immersive research: mapping the site, reading its wind flows, light patterns, emblematic views and orientation. But more than that, we try to decode its personality, what it wants to become. From there, we move to strategic modeling—combining 3D digital tools with physical maquettes—to simulate not only the form, but the atmosphere of the project. We always integrate topography, vegetation, and even human movement into these early simulations.

 

Materiality is never an afterthought. It is tested, not just imagined—sometimes through full-scale mockups built on-site, other times through live material boards that evolve with the design. What defines our process is not only technical rigor, but also emotional clarity: every choice must feel inevitable. It’s a collaborative exercise across disciplines—our architects, engineers, interior stylists, and external makers all contribute from the very first sketches.

Cubic Hotel | image courtesy of Aristides Dallas Architects

 

 

DB: What is one of the most challenging projects you’ve undertaken, and what lessons did you learn from it?

 

AD: A client once requested a ‘wow’ factor. At first, we leaned into that direction pursuing a dramatic design, but as the process evolved, midway through, we stepped back and asked ourselves: Is this the right kind of ‘wow’ for this place? This reflection led us to completely rethink the project, ultimately shifting toward a simpler design that was more in tune with the landscape. We realized that the ‘wow’ had to come from silence, not spectacle. We revised everything, choosing a design that revealed itself slowly through shadows, weight, and tactility. The lesson was clear, the most powerful architecture doesn’t demand attention; it blends in, revealing itself gradually and harmonizing with its surroundings.

The Cliffhanger | image courtesy of Aristides Dallas Architects

 

 

DB: If you could design a dream project with no constraints—site, budget, or regulations—what would it be, and why?

 

AD: I would love to design an entire village or community from scratch—a place where architecture doesn’t just shape individual buildings, but the relationships between them. Streets, courtyards, thresholds, voids, shared moments of shade or openness. That, to me, is the purest form of architecture: creating the framework for how people live together. And doing so in a way that feels timeless, rooted, and yet forward-looking. In some ways, we are already working in that direction—especially through our latest hospitality projects, where we apply these principles across multiple structures and collective environments. At the same time, our ambition is to expand our work internationally. We see design not as a regional dialect, but as a universal language—one that can adapt to different geographies, cultures, and needs without losing depth or specificity. Our method is adaptable as well as our values are transferrable.

 

We’ve already worked on projects in Cyprus, and we’re actively seeking opportunities to extend this dialogue across borders. We’re open to partnering with international clients and teams who are looking for context-sensitive architecture rooted in material intelligence, spatial storytelling, and strong conceptual clarity. No matter the scale or location, our deeper ambition remains the same: to create spaces that feel inevitable, necessary, and deeply human.

 

DB: Aside from residential and hospitality spaces, are there other typologies—such as cultural, public, or commercial projects—that you would be interested in undertaking?

 

AD: Our team is eager to take on projects that engage with collective memory, civic function, and social gathering—whether that’s a cultural center, a public plaza, or an educational facility. These programs are a natural extension of our values: they require sensitivity to both place and people. In Greece, public tenders are often structured in ways that make access difficult for local studios. But we are committed to overcoming those limitations—through partnerships, collaborations, or design competitions that open up space for meaningful impact.

 

Our approach is not bound to a specific typology. Whether it’s residential, public, or cultural, we apply the same intensity of research, contextual understanding, and formal clarity. We’re always seeking projects that challenge us to rethink conventions and expand the possibilities of what architecture can do.

VOLAX | image courtesy of Aristides Dallas Architects | read more about the project here

 

 

DB: What are you working on at the moment? Any exciting plans for the future you can share with us?

 

AD: Right now, we’re working on several hospitality and residential projects across Greece, including some delicate renovations and hybrid programs that challenge the boundaries between private and shared space. But more importantly, we feel that the studio is entering a phase of redefinition. We want to experiment further, expand our typological scope, and establish creative collaborations abroad. This is not just about scaling up—it’s about deepening our architectural language and applying it to new contexts.

 

Over the past few years, our work has quietly traveled—through exhibitions, award selections, and word of mouth—reaching audiences beyond Greece. These moments of recognition remind us that architecture has the power to speak many languages, as long as it listens first. They continue to affirm what we believe at our core: Architecture, when grounded in place but open in spirit, can resonate across cultures—wherever it is built. We remain committed to designing with clarity, empathy, and depth—wherever a project takes us. Because in the end, architecture is less about where it starts, and more about how far it can resonate.

Aristides Dallas in his studio | image by Teramok

the Athens-based Aristides Dallas Architects team | image by Kirill Samarits

 

 

project info: 

 

architect: Aristides Dallas Architects | @aristidesdallasarchitects
studio location: Exarcheia, Athens, Greece

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window window window: panov — scott frames views with australian beach house

australia framed through massive windows 

 

A quiet spatial pressure defines the first encounter of Panov — Scott’s Window Window Window House. It begins subtly with a lowered ceiling, a downward step, a line of shadow cast across the floor. The proportions are just enough to evoke a slight shift in perception, a nudge inward. The sensation is architectural rather than stylistic. Here, the Australian architects have composed a sequence of rooms that seem to slow time.

 

The newly added portion of the house is discreet in scale, embedded beneath the original structure and tracing its footprint. From the outside, its presence registers through fine adjustments to light and entry. From the inside, the atmosphere is shaped by how the window operates as an instrument—projecting outward, reframing the coastal canopy, tuning the interior to the shifting patterns of place.

images © Hamish McIntosh

 

 

Minimal Addition, Maximum Presence

 

In one room of Panov — Scott’s house in New South Wales, a window pulls forward into space and offers a ledge at the edge of the garden. The detail is pared back, yet it holds complexity in how it engages the body. This is a place to pause, to settle in briefly or linger with another, close enough to read the texture of leaves or listen for visitors along the ridge. The view expands gently, unspooling the distance between the beach, the trees, and the house.

 

The architects design the spaces to work in deliberate contrast. Contraction precedes openness. One room yields to another, modulated by thresholds and ceiling angles. Their approach draws from the architectural staging of places like the Laurentian Library, where compression and release are orchestrated to shape experience.

the new rooms are tucked beneath the original house with minimal impact on the site

 

 

panov — Scott Holds the Intangible

 

Designing the Window Window Window House, the brief for Panov — Scott was straightforward, calling for three new rooms and a relocated stair. However, the result does not rest in program. It resides instead in how subtly the additions register within the landscape, how lightly the structure touches the ground. The house remains close to the beach, but never declares itself. What has been added remains nearly invisible from a distance, nestled into the slope beneath the original timber frame.

 

This small act of expansion becomes a study in discretion. It is an architecture of minimal gesture, careful proportion, and quiet alignment with country. The project privileges the atmospheric over the formal. It draws its strength from how the body feels within it, how the light moves across a surface, how the wind is caught at the edge of a frame.

 

The new stair is practical, but even here, the space is tuned for pause. As visitors ascend, light draws the eye toward the upper landing, where materials soften the transition. White walls sit above timber, without ornament, allowing the window to do the expressive work. Throughout the house, the framing of views and the calibration of dimensions carry a calm but resonant charge.

each space is shaped by proportion and bodily awareness rather than surface expression

a projecting window creates a place to sit and observe the surrounding canopy

thresholds and ceiling angles guide movement and frame experience

light and shadow are composed carefully throughout the interior

 

project info:

 

name: Window Window Window House

architect: Panov — Scott | @panovscott

location: Pearl Beach, New South Wales, Australia

completion: 2023

photography: © Hamish McIntosh | @hamishmcintosh

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rock shoes by canyaon and bravest are soft, wearable boulders for feet

Cushiony wearable boulders but for the feet

 

The Rock Shoes by Canyaon and Bravest are a pair of soft, wearable boulders, but for feet. They’re pillowy because they’re made of EVA, or ethylene-vinyl acetate, foam. The cushiony feel protects the wearer’s feet, all the while giving them the style as if they were stuck between the gaps of the rocks and couldn’t pull their feet out.

 

The polymer used has a closed-cell structure, meaning it can be squished and then spring back to its original shape. The foam can also change shape and then return to its normal state, so wearers can keep on walking, and their Rock Shoes can go back to their original form as soon as they take them off.

all images courtesy of Canyaon and Bravest

 

 

canyaon and bravest handpaint the moss on rock shoes

 

Look closer, and the user finds that the Rock Shoes by Canyaon and Bravest have moss around them. That’s attention to detail for some who love hiking, rock climbing, and bouldering outdoors. The spurts of greenery are hand-painted by the design team as a way for them to make the stony footwear as realistic as possible. They have also used multiple layers of paint to make the moss look deeper and more lifelike.

 

The Rock Shoes by Canyaon and Bravest spring to life in several separate pieces of material, or panels. These panels are joined together to create the shoe’s final shape. Each of them helps form the rocky outer shell before the footwear becomes wearable boulders for feet. This panel arrangement also determines the shoe’s overall, realistic look. Since they’re ‘closed’, the Rock Shoes by Canyaon and Bravest may not be the most ideal footwear in the summer, but they can keep the wearer’s feet toasty in cold seasons.

the Rock Shoes by Canyaon and Bravest are a pair of soft, wearable boulders, but for feet

they’re pillowy because they’re made of EVA foam

they come in different sizes both for men and women

the design teams handpaints the realistic-looking moss around the footwear

 

 

project info:

 

name: Rock Shoes

design: Canyaon, Bravest | @canyaon, @bravest

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