Villa Monte
MONTENEGRO
COMPLETED 2014
PRIVATE RESIDENTIAL
PHOTO CREDITS - VICTOR HADJIKYRIACOU
For this project, our client invited us to Montenegro to transform an unfinished villa left behind by the previous architects. The structure consisted of empty, incomplete spaces both internally and externally, lacking warmth and functionality.
With an open brief and a tight timeline, our challenge was to transform the villa into an elegant Adriatic coastal retreat, ensuring it provided both comfort and sophistication for the family to enjoy during the summer season.
The breathtaking location and Mediterranean setting played a key role in shaping our design vision. Positioned at the highest point of an expansive plot, the villa overlooks a cascading river that runs along its eastern boundary, while a secluded private beach lies at the lowest part of the site.
Given the project's scale and the client’s desire to use the villa by summer, we implemented a phased design strategy. This approach allowed us to carry out the design, detailing and construction during the winter months, gradually completing various areas and fitting them out with all the furnishings ready for the family to arrive at the start of each summer season.
At Vakis Associates, we always enjoy complex design challenges. To meet the tight timeline of this project, we adopted a highly coordinated off-site fabrication strategy—designing and manufacturing all architectural components in Cyprus before shipping them to Montenegro for precise on-site assembly. This method ensured a controlled production process, maintaining the highest standards of craftsmanship and detailing while accelerating the on site installation.
A critical part of this approach involved an extensive survey of the existing villa, meticulously measuring each room in order to recreate an exact replica in a dedicated factory facility in Cyprus. This full-scale mock-up allowed us to refine the spatial compositions and solve all the detailing and fitting prior to shipment. By pre-assembling and verifying each element in a controlled environment, we streamlined the on-site fit-out process, ensuring seamless integration and architectural precision within the villa’s renewed design.
Phase 1 of the project focused on the complete interior design of all living spaces, bedrooms, entertainment areas, and primary and secondary kitchens across four levels of the existing villa.
The formal kitchen, designed in a handcrafted country style, features vibrant colors that establish it as the central gathering space for the family. In the living and dining areas, carefully selected furnishings from suppliers across Europe, India, and the Far East create a warm and welcoming atmosphere.
Art plays an integral role in the design. The guest bathroom ceiling features a hand-painted koi fish mural by Henry Van Der Vijver, while a double-sided fireplace separating the living and dining areas is clad in seashells by a French artist, reinforcing a seascape theme. This concept extends into the entertainment room, where custom timber panelling was designed and carved in collaboration with a Cypriot iconographer, enhances the space.
One of the main features is a 16-meter-high chandelier, designed in collaboration with LASVIT, that rises through the villa’s grand spiral staircase. Composed of hand-blown glass, it mimics a shoal of fish, bringing movement and illumination to the dark existing void. The surrounding monolithic stone walls are softened by curated ceramic artworks by renowned Cypriot sculptor Valentinos Charalambous, adding texture and depth to the space.
Phase 2 aimed to soften the building’s rigid exterior and enhance its relationship with the landscape. Timber pergola structures were introduced around the villa, supporting climbing vegetation that seamlessly integrates the architecture with its natural surroundings. A key design feature was the transformation of the main entrance into a semi-open courtyard, redefining the arrival experience. Flanked by two pergola structures, this space balances openness and enclosure, creating a transitional threshold between interior and exterior.
For Phases 3 and 4 of the project, we focused on designing a series of satellite structures, pavilions, and curated landscape elements that would enhance the existing villa and its surroundings. These interventions were strategically integrated within the lush gardens and beachfront, reinforcing the estate’s connection to nature while introducing new layers of functionality and experience.
The addition of thoughtfully designed outdoor living spaces, beach recreational zones, and a bespoke playground transformed the property into a cohesive and luxurious family retreat, seamlessly blending architecture with the Adriatic landscape.
