Visit the ancient city of Bodrum in Turkey and you will inevitably – along with past and present regulars such as Beyoncé, Kate Moss and Mica Ertugun– let yourself be enchanted by its azure waters. This part of the Turkish Riviera has earned the nickname “turquoise coast”. The epic poet Homer is said to have even described the region as the “land of eternal blue”.
But when interior designer Enis Karavil visited the construction site of his latest project – the renovation of a dated early 2000s villa on the northern tip of the Bodrum peninsula – the most striking blue feature was a heart-shaped swimming pool.
“It was very bad,” he remembers.
The house was designed to be permeable to nature, meaning there is no single “main entrance.”
Karavil was commissioned to transform the dilapidated building into an urban summer home for a wealthy couple (he a businessman, she a well-known jewelry designer), their two children and their extended family. “They wanted a functional house,” says Karavil, co-founder of the interdisciplinary Istanbul practice. Sanayi313explains. “Since they were travelling with children, they didn’t want so many accessories or breakables – they wanted to be able to move around easily and freely.” Clients also hoped to be able to accommodate hordes of relatives and friends while maintaining the feeling of a private retreat.
The solution? “We approached it like a small boutique hotel,” says Karavil.
Due to building restrictions in the area, demolition was out of the question. But for Karavil, every existing design – no matter how unfortunate – holds a kernel of possibility. “You can play with it a lot,” he says. The fact that the house was on a prime plot with unobstructed views of the Aegean Sea didn’t hurt.
The living spaces are arranged around an impressive spiral staircase, the most important design feature of the company Sanayi313.
Lateral thinking has become a trademark of Sanayi313. After studying at the Inchbald School of Design in the UK and a stint with Hubert Zandberg, Karavil returned to Istanbul in 2014 to open a design studio with his brother Amir. It is an unusual, hybrid store concept that includes their studio, a shop and a café (Sanayi means “industrial” in Turkish and 313 is the number on their door; it also happens to be Amir’s birthday). “When I started my job, I didn’t want to create a portfolio that I could show my clients,” Karavil explains. “Instead, we created a space that is like a window into our work.”
The house in Bodrum was particularly challenging: it required not only a complete aesthetic transformation (the heart-shaped pool was just the beginning), but also a technical overhaul to meet the region’s strict earthquake requirements. In collaboration with the landscape architect Murat PilevneliSanayi313 designed the property as a series of green, tiered platforms that follow the terrain down to the sea.
Step into this cinematic seaside residence
The focal point of the 2,000 m² plot is the three-storey main house. The designers wanted to break with the traditional whitewashed houses that line the Bodrum coast, while still feeling true to the region. So they re-clad the building in Hekimkoy, a regional stone. “We wanted to create something authentic,” says Karavil. “For me, that was a great combination.”
No matter where you enter the house, you are greeted by its pièce de résistance: a grand spiral staircase that rises like a peeled orange into a central light well. “My design process began with the staircase,” says Karavil. “I wanted a monumental staircase that looks like a sculpture.”
An antique table serves as a chic bar. The floor is made of travertine and the artwork is by Jannis Kounellis.
Airy common spaces, including the living room, dining area and a kitchen, are on the lower level. Sleeping quarters occupy the top two floors and have been designed like hotel suites (Sanayi313 developed four different floor plans), so family and friends can feel like they are in their own discreet sanctuary. The color palette is simple and light, marked by plastered walls, wood paneling and custom-made furniture made from materials such as linen, wicker and rattan, “materials that remind us of summer. Nothing very serious,” adds Karavil. There are some truly desirable artworks throughout, though, including pieces by Arik Levy, Hermann Nitsch and Marion Verboom.
But the main attractions are just steps away. Next to a covered outdoor living room lies a postcard-worthy infinity pool. The designers carefully dug it to maximize the view and mimic the typical blue of Bodrum’s waters. “When you look at the pool and the sea, you feel like they are somehow connected,” says Karavil.
The house is connected to the sea by a T-shaped jetty. It has sun loungers by the pool and a sofa for relaxing outside.
From the pool, guests can choose their own adventure: they can visit the property’s Californian-inspired guesthouse one floor below, or stroll through the lush lower garden. The grand finale of the property is a T-shaped jetty, equipped with an immaculate row of white sunbeds and umbrellas, where residents can soak up the sun and enjoy views of the sparkling Aegean Sea and the mythical “eternal blue.”
And there are more views to admire, says Karavil: “When you go (back) into the house and see the stairs, you think, ‘Wow.'”
Anna Fixsen, Deputy Digital Editor at ELLE DECOR, explores how to communicate the best of the world of design through in-depth reporting and online storytelling. Before joining the team, she worked for Architectural Digest, Metropolis and Architectural Record magazines. elledecor.com
