Thalis Nicolaou a slotted collaboration

A collaboration and a photographic archive born in friendship and mutual growth

When Thalis founded his design studio in Cyprus, I was already lucky enough to call him a friend. From the start, he would share with me his design process, the way he breaks down an idea, examines its purpose, and rebuilds it with a rare mix of clarity, precision, and poetry. His ethos resonated deeply with me: a respect for materials, an understanding of manufacturing that feels almost intuitive, and a commitment to creating objects that hold both functionality and meaning.

So how did all this even begin and what exactly have we been working on together?

Our very first collaboration was with his private collection. Back then, he had just decided to start designing furniture and building it all by hand in his backyard. It was simply a side project, and he asked me if I could take a few images and document the process.

I said why not.

We had a fun session, drinking coffee, taking photos, messing around with tools, like two kids on a Sunday in the 90s, no phones, no tech, just random materials and things to play with. Unexpected to the two of us yet also somehow inevitable, his work started getting a lot of attention, and so did the need for more photography. Slowly, we moved into the “studio,” which at that stage was nothing more than rooms in our houses, where we set up lights and backgrounds with whatever we had. One thing led to the next, and we kept upping our game, adding gear, adding expenses, and basically learning together how to create the visual world of a design house.

We never worked from references or followed strict rules. We just documented things as they happened behind the scenes, then created the “official photographs” based entirely on our mood, black background, white background, strange angles, whatever felt right in the moment. Looking back now, I think that randomness shaped something quite special:

Thalis now had a visual aesthetic that is uniquely his, one that even we couldn’t reproduce if we tried. And honestly, I think that’s pretty awesome.

Over the years, our friendship and creative dialogue have grown into a collaboration that has documented the evolution of what is now a multi-award-winning design house, celebrated and collected around the world, something I am very proud to be a part of. It’s honestly very cool to see photographs you literally crafted with a friend for fun ending up featured in international design magazines and winning awards.

Obviously, a partnership like this doesn’t stay in just one lane. One of our biggest collaborations was Kochinohoma – Red Soil, along with Omiros Panayides and the help of many friends. Together we pulled off something quite unique, and Red Soil is a project that, even after almost eight years since its conception, continues to evolve. In that work, Thalis’s creative perspective added real depth and dimension, the kind that changes how you see your own project.

He continues to be a constant source of inspiration for me, someone I can share ideas with, dissect my own work alongside, and often find the answers I didn’t know I was looking for.

Without partnerships like this, I honestly wonder how anyone can fully navigate being a professional creative.