Page 65 - MYCONIAN COLLECTION MAGAZINE 2025
P. 65

DESIGN








                                                                                                    The Next Act: Myconian Circe
                                                                                                    And now, Kalogridis turns his
                                                                                                    attention to what may be his
                                                                                                    most immersive project yet:
                                                                                                    Hotel Circe. Named after the
                                                                                                    legendary enchantress of
                                                                                                    Homer’s Odyssey, Circe will be
                                                                                                    the seventh Myconian Collection
                                                                                                    property in Elia — and its first
                                                                                                    and only true beachfront hotel
                                                                                                    there. Nestled just behind the
                                                                                                    group’s private beach enclave,
                                                                                                    Circe is set to redefine coastal
                                                                                                    luxury on Mykonos. Vast,
                                                                                                    seamless glass façades will erase
                                                                                                    the boundaries between interior
                                                                                                    and exterior, offering guests
                                                                                                    unbroken views of Elia’s hypnotic
                                                                                                    bay. Designed to dissolve into its
                                                                                                    setting rather than impose upon
                                                                                                    it, Circe will embody a sense of
                                                                                                    liquid minimalism — where light,
                                                                                                    sea, and architecture move as
                                                                                                    one. The name is no accident.
 Manifest OF LIGHT  Kalogridis explains. “It should ground                                          In myth, Circe was a sorceress,
                                                                                                    a weaver of illusions and
 you in the present while inspiring you
                                                                                                    hands, the hotel becomes a
 to move forward. It must feel real —                                                               transformations. In Kalogridis’
 Antonis Kalogridis, an acclaimed visionary in   and at the same time, possible.”                   space of quiet metamorphosis
 At Myconian O, this manifests
                                                                                                    — a retreat that invites you to
 the world of design-led hospitality, sets trends   as "slow luxury": earthy textures,              pause, reflect, and reimagine
                                                                                                    your path.
 open-air living, Hellenic restraint,
 and shapes the future — offering a distinct   and barefoot elegance. The resort                        “The greatest privilege in
                                                                                                    travel,” he says, “is not choosing
 opens directly onto the beach,
 perspective on what true luxury means today.  allowing guests to drift from sea to                 the destination, but choosing
 suite as if following a tide of their                                                              what that place means to you.”
 own. It is luxury reimagined not as                                                                Kalogridis’ design ethos echoes
 THOUGH ANTONIS KALOGRIDIS is   and contemporary refinement.   opulence, but as clarity. By contrast,   that idea. Each of his hotels is
 a celebrated figure in contemporary   More recently, his continued   Panoptis Escape is perched high   less about location and more
 hospitality, he continues to see   partnership with the Myconian   above the bay — a wild, windswept   about meaning. You may arrive
 himself primarily as a theatre   Collection has produced some   sanctuary. There, the light shifts   to celebrate or to heal, to
 director. And indeed, there is   of the most evocative retreats in   constantly, casting long shadows over   begin something new or to let
 something inherently theatrical   the Mediterranean: the tactile   handcrafted stone and natural wood.   something go. Whatever the
 about his work — not in its artifice,   sophistication of Myconian O in   Every villa is distinct, crafted with   reason, his spaces are built not
 but in its orchestration. Every hotel   Ornos Bay, and the elemental, almost   unpredictable textures and colours   just to host, but to hold. In an
 he touches becomes a carefully   monastic luxury of Panoptis Escape   that reflect Mykonos at its most raw   industry often obsessed with
 choreographed stage upon which   above Elia Beach.  and poetic. Both properties are                excess, Antonis Kalogridis offers
 guests can rediscover themselves.   Both projects — though radically   studies in contrast — sea and sky, sun   something far rarer: resonance.
 The script is unwritten. The setting,   different in tone and altitude — are   and stone — but they share a deep   His hotels do not shout. They
 however, is unforgettable. His   united by Kalogridis’ unwavering   connection to place. All materials   listen. And in doing so, they
 earlier collaborations with Myconian   commitment to natural materials,   are sourced locally. Every item, from   remind us that true luxury lies not
 Collection Hotels & Resorts include   emotional space, and the unspoken   carved marble to woven raffia, is   in accumulation, but in intention
 the striking design of Avaton,   dialogue between human presence   shaped by Greek artisans. Nothing   — in the quiet, powerful
 Imperial, Royal, Utopia, and Villa   and landscape.  is generic. Nothing is arbitrary. Each        realisation that you are exactly
 Collection, each reflecting a unique       “Interior design must help   space exists in conversation with the   where you need to be.•
 harmony between Cycladic tradition   people see clearly in all directions,”   island itself.


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