Architects C-O Lab - Giving Serifos an Eco Inspired future

The largely untouched Greek Cycladic island of Serifos is a serious contender for finding life in the slow lane despite an increase in popularity. Serifos courts a more sustainable and low-impact type of architecture, whether that be new hotels, villas or residential - and this is important in maintaining the balance of development and the xeric ecosystem that makes the island so unique. 

C-O Lab is an architectural studio based in both Athens and Serifos, a design studio that fosters local vernacular with smart advanced energy management, Cycladic aesthetics and a respect for nature. Low-rise, in keeping with the environ and use of natural materials score high on the C-O Lab agenda and this makes their designs beautifully at ease in their surroundings as well as respecting traditional customs, creating a tranquil, at-one ambience that is as pleasing as it is stylish. 

Founded in 2016, C-O Lab is an architecture-construction business that works on a variety of projects from residential homes, restaurants to boutique hotels with their favoured place for architectural work being Serifos in the Cyclades. Christos Siantrivanopoulos, surveying engineer and constructor, and Olga Ktenà (who hails from Serifos) an architect engineer and interior designer helm the company together and today the team includes a further quad of four architect engineers. 

Co-founders Christos and Olga confirm their ethos to be “based on functionality, innovation, simplicity and attention to detail. In all our projects our main goal is the balance between comfort, intimacy, luxury and respect for the landscape, the tradition and natural resources.”

On the island, C-O Lab was commissioned for the complete refurbishment and rethink of a typical hostelry which, today, after reopening in June 2023, is The Aficionados selected design hotel Nostos.

Nostos has been renovated with style and respect to its former life as owner Harrys’ grandfather’s abode. With an eye for sustainability, windows were replaced and the exterior insulated as well as the addition of solar panels and heat pump air conditioning. In terms of design, the ground floor was remodelled to create a welcoming, open entrance and throughout, the use of white plaster and natural chestnut wood mimic the traditional Cycladic architecture. Outside indigenous shrubs such as thyme and lavender imitate the arid topography where pockets of hardy scrub thrive. 

Another dreamy abode on the xeric isle of Serifos is private residence Lithari, perhaps one of the most covetable holiday homes we’ve seen. Mirroring the contours of the rugged cliffside, low-rise Lithari is submerged into the hill in stone, wood and marble, a remarkable camouflaging with nature yet within the structure is a liveable, open space, cradled from the wind with the cinematic Aegean views wholly accessible. Inside, rattan, wood, smooth white plaster and a few chosen ornaments make up the appealing Cycladic palette which is utterly in deference to the magnificent blues.

The cave house of Out Line, currently still in plan phase, also on Serifos is perhaps a more daring design, allowing C-O Lab to flex their architectural muscles with a challenge to build the structure around an existing stone wall, where the liveable components form a cave-like indentation behind. Sliding glazing, shaded panels and green roofs make up the patina of slick Greek island living.

C-O Labs bring design and their signature holistic approach to architecture, construction, the design process, refurbishment and a new sustainable approach to Serifos - helping the Cycladic island hang on to its subtle charm, beauty and position in the slow lane.