On a hilltop above the beautiful landscapes of Porto Heli, Aman is creating one of its renowned resorts. Aman’s philosophy pays great respect to the places where the resorts are located, wanting the guests to feel they are “there” rather than “anywhere”. This closely matches our own philosophy of landscape architecture, which must work with and enhance the existing landscape rather than creating a heterotopia.

The landscape design recognizes the elements of the existing landscape: the pine forests, the maquis and phrygana aromatic vegetation, the grand old olive and carob trees, the vineyards, the wheat-fields, and the stone agricultural walls. These elements are re-used in the resort to form various qualities, from refined to wild, and provide for a multitude of sensations, and for a feeling that one is “in” the landscape, part of it, rather than looking at it from a distance.

These techniques provide not only for a beautiful landscape which belongs to the area, but also for important environmental gains: local biodiversity and landscape history is retained, water usage and the need for pesticides and chemicals is minimized, and the re-use of the excavated earth to form walls, road surfaces, pebbles for mulching and soil for planting reduces the environmental footprint of the construction, while at the same time integrating the new resort with the materials and sensations of the surrounding landscape.