bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens

space is around us redesigns a 100-sqm apartment in kypseli, using an existing bacchus entryway mosaic to guide the reintroduction of dionysus marble, yellow terrazzo, and curved geometry.

elliath edited by christina vergopoulou October 23, 2026 3 min

prefer designboom on google

Space is around us redesigns apartment around archaic mosaic

Designed by local studio Space is around us, Bacchus Apartment is a targeted renovation of a 100-sqm residence on Fokionos Negri street in the Kypseli neighborhood of Athens, Greece. Focusing primarily on the kitchen and bathroom, the redesign draws its material and color palette from an existing entryway floor mosaic depicting Bacchus (Dionysus), utilizing butter-yellow tones, curved geometric forms, and period-specific material selections.

bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens - 1 — Fokionos Negri, a main pedestrian axis in Kypseli getting revived | all images ©Vasso Paraschi

MARBLE AND YELLOW TERRAZZO draw from 1960S MATERIAL CULTURE

In the kitchen, design practice Space is around us installs a continuous fitted cabinetry unit along the main wall, maximizing preparation surfaces and storage, terminating in triangular open shelving that adapts to the irregular floor plan. The cabinetry is finished in a butter-yellow hue sampled from the entryway mosaic, paired with Dionysus marble countertops, a material widely used in 1960s Athenian residential architecture.

Opposite the kitchen unit, a custom terracotta dining table with rounded corners and oversized cylindrical legs ensures fluid spatial circulation. The kitchen’s former gray floor was replaced with large-format yellow terrazzo tiles, which extend through the hallway and into the windowless bathroom. In the bathroom, glossy small-format lime-yellow and white tiles reflect ambient light from an internal air shaft, while a rounded vanity mirror and terracotta sconce reinforce the apartment’s geometric motifs.

bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens - 2 — Bacchus Apartment is a 100-sqm residential renovation in the Kypseli neighborhood of Athens

bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens - 3 — an existing mosaic depicting Bacchus at the living room entry served as the conceptual starting point

space-is-around-us-bacchus-apartment-renovation-kypseli-athens-designboom-1800-2 — Space is around us preserved and restored the existing Bacchus floor mosaic

bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens - 4 — yellow tones from the original floor mosaic informed the new interior color scheme

bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens - 5 — triangular end shelves of the cabinetry create a fluid transition toward the existing pantry unit

bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens - 6 — the continuous fitted cabinetry wall adapts to the irregular floor plan geometry

bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens - 7 — butter-yellow cabinetry finishes match the tones of the entryway mosaic work

space-is-around-us-bacchus-apartment-renovation-kypseli-athens-designboom-1800-3 — countertops are surfaced in Dionysus marble, a material common to 1960s Athenian apartments

bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens - 8 — curved furniture silhouettes and vintage light fixtures reference mid-century Athenian design

bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens - 9 — a custom terracotta dining table features rounded corners and two oversized cylindrical legs

bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens - 10 — small-format glossy tiles in lime yellow and white line the bathroom walls

bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens - 11 — integrated tiled shower niches provide built-in storage within the walk-in shower

bacchus floor mosaic inspires yellow terrazzo and marble apartment renovation in athens - 12 — glossy wall tiles help bounce light from an internal air shaft across the windowless bathroom

project info:

name: Bacchus apartment
architect: Space is around us | @spaceisaroundus

location: Fokionos Negri, Kypseli, Athens, Greece

photographer: Vasso Paraschi | @vassoparaschi

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.