Step Inside the Greek Prime Minister’s Creatively Refurbished Athens Headquarters

As the co-founder of Zeus+Dione—a high-end clothing line highlighting Greek craftsmanship—Mareva Grabowski-Mitsotakis has a trained eye for design. So when her husband, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, became prime minister of Greece in July 2019, she couldn’t help but notice that the space where he worked running the country—and, pre-pandemic, received foreign officials—wasn’t exactly an advertisement for Greek aesthetics and industry.

In fact, describing the 1921 building known as the Maximos Mansion, which has been the office of every Greek prime minister since 1982, Grabowski-Mitsotakis says, “It had not been repainted since 2004, just before Athens hosted the Olympics.”

That sprucing-up almost two decades ago took place in anticipation of the stream of heads of state who visited the country during the games. But the years that followed—with the economic collapse, austerity, and then the pandemic—were not always kind to Greece, or the Maximos Mansion, which is located in central Athens just off Syntagma Square. Still, with all its challenges, 2021 brought something to celebrate: the bicentennial of the Greek Revolution of 1821, which began to free the country from more than 400 years of Ottoman occupation.

In February 2021 it became clear that COVID-19 was under control enough for Prince Charles and other foreign officials to come to Greece for scaled-down ceremonies to mark March 25—Greek Independence Day—and attend the reopening of the National Gallery. The time seemed ripe to repaint and turn the Maximos Mansion into a receiving room that showcases Greece’s history, heritage, and creativity.

“My philosophy was that it has to be presentable, intriguing, and a representation of who we are,” says Grabowski-Mitsotakis. “This place represents the Greek people.”

The prime minister liked the idea—but was adamant about not sending a renovation bill to the Greek people. “He said, ‘You can do whatever you like, but it can’t cost the Greek state one penny,’” she recalls.

Grabowski-Mitsotakis accepted the challenge and assembled a dream team of about 10 volunteers to draw up plans for the restoration of the three public rooms of the Maximos Mansion: a meeting room with a conference large table, a reception area she calls “the living room,” and the prime minister’s office. The brain trust, many of whom prefer to remain anonymous, included curators and collectors, along with Elina Kountouri, managing director of Neon Foundation, a Greek nonprofit focused on bringing contemporary art to the public, and Cypriot product designer Michael Anastassiades. Together, they drew up a list of Greek artists, artisans, collectors, and institutions to approach with a request for an artwork or artifact to be loaned to the building for a two-year period.

“The idea,” says Grabowski-Mitsotakis, “is to change the art on display every two years so we can demonstrate the talent and craftsmanship of local artists” both to visiting dignitaries and to citizens. (The prime minister plans to open the office to the public once a month going forward.) “We’re not a museum; we have very limited space,” she explains. “The point is to showcase Greek culture.”

The goals of Team Maximos Mansion were to exhibit a range of materials and mediums while reflecting the traditions of different regions of Greece. There’s a blown-glass Soda table by Yiannis Ghikas next to a sofa in the living room, as well as a marble coffee table by sisters Zoe and Niki Moskofoglou of on•entropy in front of another. A geometric Aria console by Rena Dumas—on loan from the children of the late interior architect and designer—rests against a wall in the meeting room, and an elaborately carved chair from the island of Skyros, sized for a child and created by woodworker Lefteris Avgoklouris, occupies a similar position in the living room.

“He told me it takes him three days to make one child’s chair,” says Grabowski-Mitsotakis of the artisan. “You can see the love and the passion he has put into it. With these items, it’s not just about the work itself, it’s about the dignity and the skill involved in the work. There’s such a human aspect in all of this.”

Step Inside the Greek Prime Minister’s Creatively Refurbished Headquarters

In her role as the prime minister’s wife, Grabowski-Mitsotakis promotes arts and culture and women’s issues, so she made it a point to incorporate the work of female artisans of Greek citizenship or descent. Ceramicist Eleni Vernardaki’s earthenware Burnt Trees sculpture adorns the meeting room, and an area of the living room is given over to Hope the Voyage Is a Long One, a textile depicting the Samaria Gorge on the island of Crete, contributed by Greek-Argentine artist Alexandra Kehayoglou. “We called her in Argentina and asked, ‘Do you have anything that you want to lend?’” recalls Grabowski-Mitsotakis. “Not only did she loan us something, but her husband brought it himself, because it needed to arrive in time for the 25th. It’s very touching. She lived all her life in Argentina and with this tapestry, she’s back in Greece, back to her roots and the weaving that her grandmother taught her.” Loaned from Greeks living both in the country and abroad, the selections were assembled in less than two months with the help of the volunteer team.

Next in line for beautification is the mansion’s courtyard, where visiting dignitaries are often invited to breakfast. But for now, says Grabowski-Mitsotakis, “I’m very satisfied that the project came together. I wanted to make this a place that belongs to the people and relays the message that in Greece, we have beautiful history, traditions, and craftsmanship.” Describing the office of the prime minister, Grabowski-Mitsotaki says, “We are guardians of this place for a few years. My philosophy is: You might as well leave your soul in the places where you spent time. You have to love the places that represent you.”

Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest