We, as the Designer Interviews ("DI") had the distinct pleasure and opportunity to interview award-winning, most creative and innovative Alexandros Kitriniaris ("AK").
Alexandros Kitriniaris is a registered architect engineer with a diploma from the National Technical University of Athens. He earned an additional Master’s degree with honors from the same University. He is a PhD researcher and a scholarship awardee, investigating the link between architecture ecology and human physiology through leading technological advances to ensure an enduring positive impact on communities and on the environment. During his academic activity, he has received eight awards and honorary scholarships, as well as a medal with the emblem of Prometheus Torchbearer. He frequently participates in research projects, international workshops and architecture conferences, and has lectured at Wien university in Austria, Adeit university in Spain, Leibniz university in Germany, and Naples university in Italy, among others. His work has received awards in international architecture competitions, has been published in international architecture magazines, and has been exhibited at architecture events including the 1st Architecture Biennale of Thessaloniki, the 8th Architecture Exhibition in Patras, the 7th and 8th Biennale of Greek Architects in Athens, and the 25th International Union of Architects Congress and Exhibition in Durban, South Africa.
Alexandros Kitriniaris Designs
We are pleased to share with you original and innovative design work by Alexandros Kitriniaris.
Designer Interview of Alexandros Kitriniaris:
DI: Could you please tell us more about your art and design background? What made you become an artist/designer? Have you always wanted to be a designer?
AK : I am a registered architect engineer with a degree from the National Technical University of Athens. I earned an additional Master’s degree with honors from the same University. I am a PhD researcher and a scholarship awardee, investigating the link between architecture, ecology, and human physiology through leading technological advances to ensure an enduring positive impact on communities and on the environment. After graduating and registering as an architect, I established KAAF Architects, envisioning a firm that specializes in sustainable architecture by integrating innovative construction technologies with traditional building design methods.
DI: Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?
AK : The acronym KAAF has a deeper inherent meaning, as it is derived from a pictogram of a hand which means “palm” in Arabic and stands for the Phoenician letter “kaf/kaph” or the Greek “K” (kappa). The palm of the hand has a strong impact on architecture, as it embodies human creativity together with structural purity. KAAF - Kitriniaris Associates Architecture Firm is an Athens based, award-winning international architecture practice, founded by Alexandros Kitriniaris. KAAF is committed to the triple bottom line concept, which asserts that long-term and sustainable progress requires the balanced achievement of economic development, environmental performance, and social advancement.
DI: What is "design" for you?
AK : Design is for me the integration of sustainable construction technology with traditional building design methods. To be more specific, it is the application of two basic, interdependent foci. The first, which is more practical, focuses on the inventive programming strategies in terms of use, multiplicity of functions, short-term flexibility and long-term adaptability of the project to existing natural and built environments. The second, which is more conceptual, focuses on a ritual process of initiating the designer into the project production process within a framework of ecological ethos, mythical integration, poetic prospect and sensorial experience.
DI: What kinds of works do you like designing most?
AK : Our firm undertakes the licensing and authorisation of infrastructure, landscape and urban planning projects as well as of residential, hotel, office, commercial, leisure, sport, and healthcare complexes.
DI: Can you talk a little about your design process?
AK : Our aim is always to produce a high standard of architectural quality, which we see as a prevalent form of cultural expression that contributes positively to the physical, human and cultural environment. Our firm undertakes concept, preliminary, final and detailed design studies through which our clients receive a completed model that conforms to the principles of economic efficiency, environmental performance and social responsibility.
DI: Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?
AK : Every young designer should have a vision and set long-term goals. They will need to formulate a ten-year plan, including a clear vision of what they want to achieve within 10 years, where they want to live and work, what other professions they want to collaborate with and who they want their future clients to be.
DI: What is your "golden rule" in design?
AK : To establish a link between architecture ecology and human physiology through leading technological advances to ensure an enduring positive impact on communities and on the environment.
DI: What skills are most important for a designer?
AK : Most of the time I try to sketch and improve the ways in which I can produce a design for an idea that is consistent with the initial expectations as well as with the functional demands of a project.
DI: Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?
AK : Our firm works with a multidisciplinary team of architects, structural and environmental engineers, landscapers, urbanists, interior designers as well as branding agencies and marketing professionals to produce sustainable buildings and landscapes.