GREECE DIARIES ‘25: INSPO BEHIND AKTI

After seven years, I finally returned to Greece this year - part holiday, part design pilgrimage. Between swims, long lunches and unplanned detours, Akti started to take shape in my mind. A feeling first, a palette second, and a quiet homage to a country that lives in my bones.

WHICH PARTS OF GREECE DID YOU VISIT, AND DO YOU EVER GO BACK TO THE SAME SPOT?

I visited Sifnos and Serifos for the first time - both slow, grounded islands that were exactly what I needed on this trip. I don’t usually go back to the same place twice. I like to keep moving, keep discovering. As long as I’ve seen it with my own eyes and captured it in a photo, I’ve got what I need. That feeling stays with me, and becomes a reference I can pull from later.

HOW DOES YOUR GREEK HERITAGE SHOW UP IN YOUR DESIGN WORK?

I try not to be too literal about it. I didn’t want to do blue and white and call it “Greek” - that’s been done. For Akti, it was the pink Aegean sunset that stayed with me. Greece has this wash of colour at dusk that I swear you don’t get anywhere else - soft, warm, a little bit magical. That became the foundation for everything. The rest came naturally - ceramics, handmade textures, sculptural forms. It didn’t need to shout to feel Greek.

WHAT WAS YOUR DAILY RHYTHM WHILE TRAVELLING?

I don’t travel for long stretches, so the jet lag always hits. I sleep late, wake early - helps me squeeze more into the day. I start with a frappé metrio [a Greek iced coffee, half sugar], then spend most of the day in the water or soaking up ideas. I don’t carry a sketchbook, I just take a lot of photos - details, colours, textures - and later reinterpret them in my own way. Afternoons are for hiking or boating. Evenings are always long - usually wine and laughs with cousins and siblings, menthols in hand...The space and the people just blur into one beautiful moment.

WERE THERE ANY PLACES OR DETAILS THAT REALLY STAYED WITH YOU?

Sifnos left a real mark. Pelicanos in Faros was a standout, and Nus in Platy Gialos - nothing overly styled, just beautifully layered and real. Even the ceramics and textiles in the small shops were full of quiet inspiration. There’s something about the way everything feels considered, but never precious. I love that balance.

A MOMENT THAT HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH DESIGN, BUT EVERYTHING TO DO WITH MEMORY?

Fikiada Beach. You can hike or boat in - we were lucky to be on the water that day. No wind, no noise, just those surreal blue waters and a tiny hidden church on the edge of the rocks. It wasn’t about design, it was just about being still. And honestly, those are the moments that stay with me the longest.