As luxury villa development 33Calaconta in Ibiza enters its final stage of development, luxry lifestyle PR agency, Pilot PR sits down with the lead architect Maged Bermawi to find out more about his role in this successful eco-lux development and working alongside the designer, Jose Peman.
1. Tell us a bit more about you and your work?
Born and raised in Cairo-Egypt, I now live in Altea-Spain. I have always been passionate about architecture and the arts. I have been working for over 20 years specializing in housing, architecture and engineering. I am also interested in academia and work closely with the Universidad Politecnica de Valencia, Spain.
2. When did you get involved with Jose Peman and the development at 33Calaconta?
I have been working with Jose for about 10 years – I was there from the beginning when the dream for 33Calaconta was just born. We have collaborated in the creation of some very interesting projects and I am particularly proud of the success at 33Calaconta which has had an excellent reception from the buyers and the market.
3. What was your brief?
The brief went through a number of evolutions before we arrived at what you now see at 33Calaconta! Throughout that process however, we always had the shared vision of delivering homes which were inspired by local, Ibizan architecture, environment friendly, exclusive and luxurious.
4. Jose is passionate about Ibiza and island living. He wanted the homes to be inspired by traditional Ibizan architecture but with an understated laid-back luxury aesthetic. How did you realise this?
Our team and Jose spent a long time debating and sculpting the concept of laid-back luxury. Aspects like light, proportion and space took precedence over direct formal expressions. I believe that those ingredients, in addition to careful attention to beauty, allowed us to meet those demands of the project.
5. Jose also wanted every house ‘to have its own sky’. How was this achieved?
The presence of patios in Mediterranean architecture has long been proof of its functionality and Jose was keen to interpret this idea so that each home could have their own private piece of sky.
6. What design element are you most proud of?
Light. The natural light is the first thing that strikes you when enter the homes at 33Calaconta.
7. 33Calaconta is proud of its eco-credentials including being the first development on the island to use geothermal energy for air conditioning and heating – what other environmental considerations were taken into account?
Actually a lot of attention has been paid to environmental impact. In addition to geothermal energy, the design considered aspects like Insulation, cross ventilations and sun exposure as well as technological solutions for greywater recycling and reuse, and rainwater harvest. We also used ecological construction methods and the majority of our materials, such as the stone, come directly from the build site itself.
8. Can you sum up 33Calaconta’s aesthetic in three words?
Proportion, simplicity, and space.
9. Why do you think Ibiza has such an enduring appeal as a place to live?
Maybe this deep feeling of freedom that Ibiza inspires. And its personality.
10. What is your favourite place in Ibiza?
33Calaconta of course! And Ibiza Old Town.
11. Do you have any upcoming projects for the future?
We are looking at some very exciting projects for the future. I hope we can announce them soon!