Architect - DesignerSelected Project · 08
Santorini Primary School & Kindergarten
The Project
A primary school, kindergarten and cultural complex conceived as an extension of Santorini's volcanic terrain: low, earth-toned and organised around shaded courtyards, planted roofs and an embedded amphitheatre.
Developed in 2021 for the Archdiocese of Thira, the proposal follows the natural slope rather than resisting it. The programme is distributed across a family of low volumes, allowing the school to settle into the landscape with the quiet presence of a cave settlement. A central sunken amphitheatre and circular civic square form the social heart of the composition, connecting the primary school, kindergarten, library, administration and multipurpose spaces.
Earth-toned lime plaster, local beige stone, timber screens, clay elements and cobbled paths translate the material memory of Santorini into a contemporary learning environment. Planted roofs, shaded routes and courtyards on two levels temper the island climate, while accessible ramps give every child, teacher and visitor an intuitive route through the complex.
Concept · One with the Earth
Not a building placed on Santorini, but a learning landscape carved into it.
The proposal begins with the island itself: its slope, volcanic ground, intense light and the spatial memory of Karterados. Architecture withdraws into the terrain, allowing courtyards, planted roofs and shaded paths to become the school’s most important rooms.
Follow the Slope
Levels descend with the natural terrain from ±0.00 to −5.50 m. The exposed volumes remain low, while planted roofs read as a continuation of the landscape.
A Civic Heart
A sunken amphitheatre and circular square connect the kindergarten, primary school, library, administration and multipurpose hall into one social centre.
Architecture of Shade
Terracotta screens, timber louvers, pergolas and deep thresholds filter the Cycladic sun and turn circulation into a sequence of protected outdoor rooms.
A School as Settlement
Protected courtyards and small-scale volumes recall Cycladic neighbourhoods. A chapel acts as a familiar landmark within a contemporary educational landscape.
Material Language
A palette drawn from the island.
- 01Terracotta screens
- 02Earth-toned lime plaster
- 03Natural timber
- 04Local beige stone
- 05Olive trees & island herbs
Interior Learning Spaces
Warm, tactile rooms shaped around the scale of the child.
Inside, the language of shelter and earth becomes lighter and more tactile. Warm oak, softly curved thresholds and filtered Aegean daylight shape classrooms, reading rooms, play areas and shared spaces that feel calm, generous and connected to the landscape outside.
The Plan
The programme is generated by the contour lines.
Rather than flattening the site, the masterplan uses its inclination to create distinct yet connected learning communities. The circular centre gathers the entire complex; from there, accessible routes branch toward every use and level.
Sectional Landscape
Learning unfolds across the slope.
The axonometrics reveal the project as a terraced landscape rather than a conventional school block. Roofs become gardens, corridors become shaded streets and the difference in level creates protected courts without isolating any part of the programme.
Climate & Identity
Shade is treated as architecture.
The curved terracotta screen at the centre of the complex is an environmental filter and a civic marker. Its depth softens the intense light, produces moving patterns of shadow and gives the gathering space a memorable identity without becoming monumental.
Local planting, stone, timber and muted earth tones reduce the visual presence of the buildings. The result is a school that feels rooted, calm and unmistakably of Santorini.
Project Gallery
Space, material and light in detail.
Design Intent
A school that belongs to the island: low, shaded and continuous with the earth.