Restoration of the Marble House and the Anastasiadis Tobacco Warehouse
Our Projects
CYCLOPS Non-Profit Organization implemented the structure of a cultural venue of multiple use at the most central point of the city of Drama, in the Park of Agia Varvara.
The project involved the transformation of the building complex of Anastasiadis residence and tobacco warehouse, an authentic architectural jewel, into a Cultural Center.
The aim of the project is to contribute to the city’s cultural events and to become actively integrated into the contemporary life of society. The exhibition spaces, within this unique monumental ensemble (house, tobacco warehouse, and courtyard), will provide the conditions for strengthening the city’s cultural life and its connection with the arts, primarily the art of photography.
In order for the integration of the new use into the historic building complex to follow contemporary trends, the structural reinforcement and the mechanical installations applied adhered to the most modern specifications and were incorporated into the buildings in a discreet manner. To highlight the architectural grandeur, it was necessary to remove non-suitable modern interventions that had diminished the value of the buildings, and above all, to restore both their form and the memory of the city.
The buildings regained their distinctive and rare morphological architectural features, as well as their painted decoration. Countless works were carried out on the buildings themselves, both on their structural features and on their aesthetic impressions. Thus, in the Marble House, the colored stained-glass windows and skylights, the metal exterior doors, and the altered upper-floor frames were restored, so that visitors may now appreciate the original version of the building, the era that it represents, as well as the permanent and temporary exhibitions that will be hosted there.
In the tobacco warehouse, the windows were restored to their original structure, and the wooden features of the upper floor and the roof were repaired.
In the courtyard, the metal features and the marble coping of the fence were conserved, and the area was landscaped so as to be suitable for cultural events.
The contribution to the city of Drama is invaluable for the history of the region and its preservation.