Michail G. Papavarnavas // Portfolio ‘17
Urban Regeneration Projects I.
εNAF Research Project: Reconceptualizing Nafpaktos
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II.
Redevelopment of the “Koum-Kapi” coastal area in Chania
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III. Redesign and Rehabilitation of a former coal mining area in Ptolemaida
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IV. Regeneration & Redevelopment of the Germanina Farm
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Architecture, Adaptive Reuse & Historic Preservation Projects I.
The Headquarters of the Central Cooperative Bank of Cyprus
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II. Adaptive resuse of two apartments into a single family house
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III. Restoration of a Neoclasical Building in Patras
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IV. Historic Preservation of a listed building. The Nativity Church at Palfrey
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Michail G. Papavarnavas mpapav@gmail.com
+1 (857) 247 1759
1539 Cambridge st, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
Urban Regeneration Projects
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RESEARCH PROJECT εNAF: Reconceptualizing Nafpaktos Critical approaches towards the so-called “historic” urban environment Research Coordinator: Prof. St. Mamaloukos Research Associate: M. Papavarnavas Research Assistants: K Petrakos, G. Koutropoloulos, D. Anagnostopoulos Reasearch Technical Assistants: K.Sakellaropoulou, V.Pardali, M.Michalopoulou
The historic city of Nafpaktos (Lepanto in Latin) is one of the most telling examples regarding the perplexing coexistence between a Mediterranean modern city and the remnants of its “glorious” past. The “Papillon City” of Nafpaktos is the result of a synergy between its fortress and the rugged coastal topography of the region. The fortress was effectively blocking for centuries one of the main passages to the hinterland of Central Greece and to Peloponnese respectively. Ironically through, the above raison d’ etre of the city, became the scapegoat of the modern times. In a world crying for development the city walls were deemed as mere burden and obstacle to development. The common problematique regarding the coexistence of past and future preoccupied many generations of architects during the course of the last two centuries. In most of the cases their endeavors were trapped into misleading dilemmas – tradition vs progress, regional vs international – leading as a result to disastrous design choices. In this regard, we decided to approach the topic through a series of thought-provoking design proposals in an attempt to question the extent up to which history and design can be combined, unlocking innovative and creative idea, but most importantly a great task of research. Location: Nafpaktos, Aetoloakarnania, Greece Commisioned & Funded by the Munincipality of Nafpaktos Executed by the University of Patras Supervised by the Greece’s Ministry of Culture Year: 2014 - 2015
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Masterplan of the redeveloped area
Section of the redeveloped area
Streetview of the area before the intervention
Streetview of the redeveloped area
The exhibition of the “εNAF” research project Curators: M. Papavarnavas, K. Petrakos Curatorial Assistants: G. Koutropoulos, K. Sakelaropoulou Location: Nafpaktos, Aetoloakarnania, Greece Year: 2017
Plan of the exhibition
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DESIGN COMPETITION (Honorable Mention) Redevelopment of the “Koum-Kapi” coastal area in Chania Team: M Papavarnavas, D Anagnostopoulos, K Petrakos
The “Koum-Kapi” (meaning“Gate of Sand”) is the only Venetian gate of the walled city of Chania that remains intact. It took its name from the sandy beach that lies next to the gate. Once deserted and desolate, Koum Kapi is currently one of the most vibrant places of the city. Numerous cafes, scattered all along the coastal area, pedestrians, bicyclists, swimmers and heavy traffic congestion resembles the daily routine of this district. In 2013, the municipality of Chania held an architectural completion, asking for the redesign and redevelopment of the area. The idea of this project consists of two distinct axes. The main axis relates to the history of the area, while the other concerns the relation of city with the sea. Particularly, the circular plan of the straw huts that used to occupy the area became the source of inspiration for the circular pattern of the masterplan. On the other hand, in order to enhance the current relation between the city and the sea, the coastline was sharpened. Namely, in the western part of the area, the coastline was extended towards the sea, creating a “proper” public space, while on the on the eastern part, the coastline recedes against the city, providing adequate space for the beach. Location: Chania, Crete, Greece Year: 2013
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DESIGN COMPETITION (Entry) Redesign and Rehabilitation of a former coal mining area in Ptolemaida Team: M.Papavarnavas, K.Petrakos, T.Marinaki, K.Sakellaropoulou, S.Sofianou
“For urbanization form is nothing, the adequate satisfaction of human needs is everything.” Ildefonsο Cerda, General Theory of Urbanization Our main objective appears as an alternative of the contemporary urban condition that overlooks architecture, and design in general, as an ideology of consensus within a territory of antagonist realities. The synthesis of design should provide a flexible framework, rather than final solutions, to trigger productive negotiations between the political, social, cultural and environmental dimension of the future city where the only expert is the ever-changing society. We propose the project site as a holistic system where humans and landscape interact within a flexible three-dimensional urban framework which matches patterns of population concentration with city form. This proposition is relevant in the light of the Urban Lab’s argument, led by Neil Brenner, in which urban today represents a worldwide condition where the main conceptual distinction is made between urban agglomerations and operational landscapes. The conceptual method we propose shows the potential of the grid as active agent in the future development of the landscape rather than a passive and simple quantitative consequence within the spatial structure of the contemporary city. The project area requires a conceptual loop to trigger a qualitative bustle rather than a quantitative passiveness. Location: Ptolemaida, Greece Year: 2016
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DESIGN COMPETITION (Entry) Regeneration & Redevelopment of the Germanina Farm Team: M. Papavarnavas, K. Petrakos, L. Spathis
The present architectural competition, besides the architectural synthesis for the regeneration and redevelopment of the “Germanina Farm� calls also for a proposal of the new uses of the farm. Over the last few decades, the rapid growth of the tourism at the Geroskepou inevitably changed its agricultural character, which was sovereign for centuries. The process was accelerated by the new Paphos International Airport which is next to the Germanina Farm. In such cases of rapid changes there is always a serious risk that the original character of the place would be damaged or lost irreversibly. Hence, it is crucial a strategic plan which will govern the change and will take under serious consideration the special qualities and the old character of the place. In this spirit the particular proposal for the Germanina Farm is to become a Centre for the research and dissemination of the agricultural tradition of the greater Geroskepou area. Location: Geroskepou, Paphos Province, Cyprus Year: 2011
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The idea for the pattern of the facades
Plans, section & elevation of the water tower
Architecture, Adaptive Reuse & Historic Preservation Projects
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DESIGN COMPETITION (Entry) The Headquarters of the Central Cooperative Bank of Cyprus Team: M Papavarnavas, D Anagnostopoulos, K Petrakos, L Spathis
The new headquarters building attempts to interpret the history of the bank into terms of architectural language. The core concept of this project consists on the main ideals of the cooperative movement and the deep roots of the organisation in the strong agricultural tradition of the island. This strong agricultural character of Cyprus that was predominant in the island until very recently along with the cooperative ideals gave flesh and bones to the Cooperative Bank of Cyprus. This very same character was set as the foundation tone of these new headquarters. The new “agricultural� foundation that hosts the public activities of the complex becomes a green space open to the city. On top of this foundation a new dynamic volume accepting all the private programs is located. The manipulation of the volumes, the program distribution and the material used create a composition capable to provide the symbolic perspective needed. Location: Nicosia, Cyprus Year: 2012
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PROFESSIONAL PROJECT Adaptive resuse of two apartments into a single family house Michail Papavarnavas
Few meters away of the the walled city of Nafpaktos (Lepanto), adjacent to the west moat, lies an area called “Mikro Varousi” (in plain English “small suburb”). Situated on steep slope at the foot of the hill, maintains a rather peculiar network of small roads and lanes, similar to those that were developed during the middle ages. However, this is due to the uncontrolled expansion of the neighborhood, especially on the second half of the 20th century, but also due to its topography that did not facilitate the implementation of the greater urban plan. The above features, combined with the highly appreciated natural environment, led to a fallacy regarding the historical value of this district, hence a strict protective regime was applied. Nevertheless, Far from having such value, the above area is full of rather tasteless and fairly new houses build after the Second World War, like the one that we were commissioned to redesign and renovate. Namely, it is a two storey semidetached concrete house, build in 1967. Originally, the building consisted of two separate apartments that were asked to unify into a two storey family house. The main idea of the project was the interruption of two strong “barriers”. The first was a physical barrier, namely the concrete slab that separates the two apartments, while the second relates to the fallacious notion of historicity in the aforementioned area. Therefore, the interruption of the first barrier was marked by an extended cut in the slab, while a disproportionate large window in the front elevation manifested the interruption of the second. Location: Nafpaktos, Aetoloakarnania, Greece Year: 2014
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Plan of the first floor
Plan of the ground floor
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PROFESSIONAL PROJECT Restoration of a Neoclassical Building in Patras Team: K. Petrakos, M. Papavarnavas
The two-story corner house was build at the beginning of the 20th century in the intersection of two major streets of the city of Patras. In 1992 the building was listed as a protected historic property by Greece’s ministry of Culture. In 2015 we were commissioned to provide a preservation plan for the two facades of the building as well as to design the adaptive reuse of the second floor’s residential apartment. The design idea was simple. We retain 50% of the floor intact and we completely gutted the other half. With this simple gesture we managed to unite and maximize the space and natural light of the entrance, the dinning and living room as well as of the kitchen. The bedrooms and the bathroom retained their initial configuration and the original domestic quality of the old historic residence. Location: Patra, Achaia, Greece Year: 2015
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Design strategy diagram
Before
After
South facade
West facade
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PROFESSIONAL PROJECT Historic Preservation of a listed building. The Nativity Church at Palfrey Firm: PiPhi3 Architects
Team: Sp. Papavasileiou, Ap. Kyteas, M. Papavarnavas, V. Basoukos
The following are the seven key objectives which inform the nature of the project and provide the basis for the proposals that follow: 1. Make a sustainable, ecologically sound community through holistic understanding of social needs and potential. 2. Enhance the general behaviour of the building in terms of energy provision and consumption, waste management through appropriate, modern and innovative design and technology. 3. Maintain principal aspects, which inform the existing general character of the building. 4. Enhance the function of the building as a Community Centre. 5. Enhance the quality of internal and external space. 6. Achieve a new aesthetic within the Church proper, able to motivate meaning and identity for the local Orthodox community. 7. Ensure financial security in terms of its long-term conservation and maintenance needs. Location: Palfrey, Walsall, United Kingdom Year: 2012
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