Kizi Design Studio

Discovery

Every January I look forward to the Greek design fair Greek Brand New to brighten up my Athens winter and it is there that I discovered Kizi Design Studio.

A design and architectural practice, it was founded in Athens in 2013, by architects Yiannis Kizis and his sons Constandis and Spyros, who is an industrial designer.

Spyros, who works on furniture and products, loves simple, geometric forms and materials as well as colours which breathe life and energy into every creation. Each one of his products is made with functionality in mind.

Spyros loves simple, geometric forms and materials as well as colours which breathe life and energy into every creation. Each one of his products is made with functionality in mind.

Above all, what makes his work special is the research that goes into specifying each material and the methodology used to make it.

Here at A Magic Cabinet, we have chosen the handmade plant or pencil pots and a desk organizer which are useful and aesthetically pleasing.

They have been fashioned from the combination of four different materials: cork, iron chips, cement and resin.

Memory

Architecture runs in the blood of the Kizis family. Spyros’s father, Yiannis, opened his architectural practice fifty years ago, with Constandis, joining thirty years later.

Spyros is a graduate of the University of Aegean, where he now teaches. He also completed a Master’s degree in Product Design at Edinburgh University and he interned at the Victoria and Albert Museum. His work has been widely exhibited in many countries.

Spyros returned to Greece four years ago and decided on a rebranding of the family office. He designs spaces as well as objects. “When you mix an architect with an industrial designer, the result is very creative as they both bring something different to the table”.

He likes to remember how his creativity began. When he was fifteen, his parents wouldn’t buy him the guitar he wanted. He found the neck of a bass guitar in a building skip and along with a baking tray, he made a banjo that actually worked!

Three years ago he created an environmentally friendly, handmade furniture range out of thistle plants mixed with ecological resin. This was for a pop up restaurant called Blue Hill Farm housed within Selfridges, the London department store.

Spyros’ creative range is extensive. He recently designed the medal for last year’s Authentic Marathon in Athens. He had started working on his design two years previously, after seeing an Athens Marathon medal given to a friend who had participated in the legendary race.

Narration

Kizi Design Studio is based in a neoclassical building Yannis restored in Plaka, the oldest part of Athens, nestling beneath the rocky fortress of the Acropolis, with narrow streets and historical houses.

It employs seven full time staff.

Spyros is on a continuous journey of discovery and he also draws inspiration from his clients’ comments. He finds industrial design very challenging as he has to extend beyond his comfort zone, in order to create something to suit other people’s needs. Equally demanding is networking with the companies who want large orders as Kizi Design Studio is a small company with an individual feel to it.

Spyros’ creative range is extensive. He recently designed the medal for last year’s Authentic Marathon in Athens. He had started working on his design two years previously, after seeing an Athens Marathon medal given to a friend who had participated in the legendary race.