At Mrs. Flora’s

As Cycladic as it gets 

I couldn’t start talking to you about Mrs. Flora’s Aegean traditional home, without telling some things about her first; and it is very easy for me, because she is one of the kindest, good-hearted people I know…

I close my eyes and imagine her walking in the streets of Marpissa, always having something nice to say to her neighbors, always with a smile, always in a hurry because she wants to prepare a pie for her grandchildren or work at her loom.

She is a symbol for me; of all the old time stories I’ve heard about the beautiful Aegean people and about the art of living a simple, yet colorful life where creativity and hospitality are values that are transmitted from one generation to the next.

Her home is exactly like her; unpretentious and joyful: one of the few spaces I have visited that even thought are full of antiques, create such a feeling of lightness and freshness, almost like a playground.

White and blue, red and turquoise, you can see the same color touches in Flora’s Cycladic interior and in her beautiful weavings… But the thing I love mostly about her house, is that everything about it is locally originated; from the handcrafted furniture to the shells and sea sponges that are part of the decoration, from the loom carpets and the old photograph compositions, to the traditional Aegean ceiling and walls that are built in the most efficient way; all the elements of the house create an ensemble that seems to have grown naturally, like a tree or a sand hill. Human intervention kept to the absolute minimum and close to the human scale: That is the magic of the traditional Aegean architecture…

 

 

I would like to thank Mrs. Flora Anoussaki for letting us into her home and for being part of the inspiration that brought me back to this amazing island.

 

words by maria alipranti

photos by christos drazos