Famous Greek Architects: Urban Soul Project

Interviews

03.05.2022

Eva Karolidou

5 minutes

Designing buildings and space is about creating experiences, not just something attractive, while modern challenges have made architects an even more necessary part of the building process.

These are some of the points made by Tasos Georgantzis, owner of architects Urban Soul Project (USP), when we recently caught up with him for a chat. Some 12 years ago, Mr Georgantzis set up USP with Konstantinos Floros in what has become one of the country’s largest and most successful architecture offices. With a 75 person staff and an impressive portfolio of projects in and out of Greece, USP is helping reshape the way that buildings are seen and used in Greece.

With studies in Thessaloniki, Liverpool and London, the head of USP has become something of a representative for younger Greeks who emerged from the country’s economic crisis with a more creative outward-looking view of the world, willing to take global competition head on. By designing houses, apartments, hotels, workspaces, restaurants, commercial stores and public areas, USP tackles each project from a different starting point, testing its creative limits.

“There are millions of ways to design a successful space, as each time different needs request to be fulfilled. And by saying needs, I do not mean only the existing but also those that may emerge in the future or those that have not yet been identified,” said Mr Georgantzis.

The buildings may be firmly fixed into the ground, but architects are faced with moving targets. Changing energy needs, ESG requirements and workplace habits brought on by environmental concerns and the pandemic mean that home and office needs have changed abruptly and look to continue doing so in the years to come. The need for change and flexibility plays a dominating role in designs, where future-proofing a home is just as important as creating a practical living space.

“The architect’s main objective is to respond to existing and emerging needs. Research in terms of concepts, forms, materials and standards is the essence of architecture,” says Mr Georgantzis.

“Designing buildings and spaces that respond to today’s request for energy efficient projects, is an evolving challenge. For example, for the past two years, in USP we have been doing extensive research on workspace design. We are studying layouts, typologies and materials and we are trying to find new answers for questions considered answered. It is a thrilling process,” he adds.

Based in Thessaloniki, the company has designed a number of impressive projects in the northern Greek city, including the offices of Elxis, which has featured in the Open House Thessaloniki architecture tours. USP has also expanded with offices in Athens and London, picking up a number of awards along the way. More recently, in January, the company was among the winners of the prestigious German Design Award 2022 in the category “Excellent Architecture – Interior Architecture” for its design of the Prodea building in Athens.

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