Olive study center in Malesina, Fthiotida

Student: Asimaki Efstathia
Supervisor: Skoutelis Nikolaos
Department of architecture, Technical University of Crete
Presentation date: 3 Δεκέμβριος 2014

This thesis studies an intervention in Fthiotida, Greece, at the area of Malesina, creating a study center for olive and olive oil. The study area focuses northeast of Malesina, near of Saint George Monastery, creating a new attraction for the habitants and visitors, keeping the already existing facilities (athletic facilities, camping, older and newer monastery of Saint George and oil press). (

The inspiration of this project was the amount of olive grove and the close relation of local society with olive. Through the intervention, we want to create a study center not only for farmers but also for any interested about olive. It will be at the same time a thorough educational center and a place for recreation and inspiration. Complementary, we will form the access route to the area with some interventions at Malesina's central road, by creating pedestrian road and bikeway.

The project focuses at study center that consists of the educational center, library, tasting lab, shop and restaurant. Also, study center has an auditorium for 350 people and multi-purpose room. These rooms will be used for the needs of educational center, monastery or habitants. Keeping the existing pine forest and with olive groves and varieties of beautifying and aromatic plants, we create a park consorted with the central and the area.

The propose focuses on study center which has the educational center with classrooms, laboratories (olive's elaboration, biochemical lab, olive-growing), model - oil press, storage places and olive grove (it will be used as experiential lab). The most important place of educational center is the olive-growing room and lab and their connection with the way that leads to the olive grove with different varieties of olive trees. As well, there is the management offices and the guard's place with his house. At floor level there is a library which has the monastery's historical archive and archive for educational center.

Plants, which we have used in project, are different varieties of olive trees for olive grove, pine forest and aromatic and beautifying plants. In materials, at central way that connect the uses, we have used traditional tiling that already exists at courtyard of new monastery and along developed a wooden pergola with climbing plants. Floors' material internal pedestrian road fits in with the environment. Finally, at the construction we have used reinforced concrete and some walls have wooden planks.