The Scientific Folklore Hallucinations of Dimitris Pikionis

Been looking at the drawings of Dimitris Pikionis recently, like this perspective study for a garden entrance, which I actually used to visit as a kid. I never knew the garden and what you saw in it was so precisely planned, though I could sense that the place was slightly spooky, and as kids we were told that this was the work of an important architect.
Pikionis was what we would call a Critical Regionalist, which means he updated modernism with a heavy dose of folk.
His seemingly simple folk landscape arrangements, were carefully, if not hysterically studied.

or were just entirely revolutionary, like this pavilion for the expo of Neo Faliro in 1938

private home

monument

super famous path towards the Acropolis

the magnificent drawings have a life of their own, they form a strange world of scientific folklore hallucinations.
Like this house that seems to have become one with an out of focus tree.

another garden

another gate

the Pourris residence (1953) of the first garden drawing.

INGOT

Wikipedia says that "An ingot is a material, usually metal, that is cast into a shape suitable for further

processing."


This is Ingot Coffee Bar in Kitakyushu, Japan by Shoei Yoh architects, from the late 70s.

I'm guessing it was called Ingot because it looks like a diamond? or some type of mineral?
And in the color picture, it almost looks like there is somebody on a laptop in there.












Anyway, loving the unexpected corporate miniature cafe with the classic Pila chair and the infinity mirror w/ plants, and these images have been patiently waiting to be blogged for months, so I guess today was the day.