Marinos Panayi

Frederick University

Department of Architecture

P08 | MEDITERRANEAN PHAROS. Intercepting the urban skyline of Limassol.

by Marinos Panayi 



This thesis examines the possibility of creating a 'tall building' as a landmark of supra-Mediterranean, within the location of the inactive existing facilities of the new Limassol port, bringing them to an active social life. The proposal seeks to upgrade the capabilities of the region, and indirectly of the city, with the implementation of an ambitious project such as the 'tall building,' and the establishment of a landmark for it. The investigation and analysis of the specific coastal front, as well as of other within the wider region of the Mediterranean sea, designated the new harbor area to accommodate the proposal. This area is accessed from the west end of the beachfront, where degradation is eminent compared to the rest of the front. The logic of landscaping led to the search for inspiration and philosophy forms for the building. The bridging of the two ends of the existing breakwater, which is the central idea of the produced space, required the search for building forms which span the space, resulting in a vacuum, primarily due to manufacturing and restrictions of the principle ports. The building has a public nature. It hosts the facilities of the Centre for Mediterranean Studies and other uses. Tall buildings can accept negative criticism, which may be enhanced in the case of our country, due to the scale, the distance from the ground, the state of technology required, and because of the seismicity of the region. Without neglecting these problems it appears that in the professional activity of architects in Cyprus apparently there will be no opportunity to address this challenge. That is, the complexity and severity in resolving issues around the study of a 'tall building.'


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Marinos Panayi   was born in Limassol in 1987. He graduated with honors from the School of Architecture at Frederick University in Cyprus from which he received the BA, Pg-Dip Arch in 2012. His thesis passed the final phase being evaluated among the top ones. Since then, he has been working with the Polytia Armos and Josephides and Associates consulting offices in Nicosia and the About Architecture office in Limassol, on both private and public projects. In 2013 he co-founded the workshops’ platform Process23 that examines digital architecture. During his studies and later as a professional architect has participated in local, European and International architectural competitions. He received awards in student competitions and the 1st prize for the new airport proposal in occupied Nicosia. He is currently expecting the results from the Greekarchitects awards.