Every summer, the historic Old Carpet Factory mansion on Hydra opens its doors to the public. Held in June during DESTE Art Week, Old Carpet Factory Open House presents a rare opportunity to step inside one of the island’s most storied private residences. A weeklong series of cultural events is presented in partnership with Mnemosyne Projects.

The event is hosted by music producer and Old Carpet Factory current owner Stephan Colloredo-Mansfeld, with cultural programming curated by Ekaterina Juskowski. Together they transform the historic mansion, recording studio, and artist residency into a salon for contemporary art, literature, music, film, and conversations all happening in a single week.

In 2016 Stephan Colloredo-Mansfeld established the Old Carpet Factory Recording Studio that has become an international destination for musicians. Drawn to its remarkable collection of vintage analog equipment and its singular location on Hydra. Since 2019, the accompanying artist residency, founded by Ekaterina Juskowski, has expanded the site's mission beyond music, supporting artists, researchers, and writers while documenting the island's evolving cultural heritage.

Old Carpet Factory Open House follows the idea that culture should be open to everyone and invites artists, writers, musicians, and filmmakers to present their works with the local community and international art visitors coming to Hydra during DESTE art week.

At the center of this year's program is Opuntia, a site-specific installation by the marble atelier on•entropy. Founded by sisters Niki and Zoe Moskofoglou, on•entropy has deep roots in the Greek marble tradition. Within this context, it specializes in sculptural objects that inhabit the space between design, art, and architecture.

Inspired by the prickly pear cactus that flourishes throughout the Mediterranean landscape, Opuntia is a collection of sculptural marble objects with organic forms suspended between growth and permanence.

Literature occupies an important place within the program. Continuing the island's literary legacy, the program regularly features writers and publications. Both Stephan Colloredo and Ekaterina Juskowski regularly contribute to literary publications and share their platform to promote the tradition.

This year marked 10 years since Dokumenta that took place in Athens and inspired the book De Les Kouventa, by Greek novelist Makis Malafekas. One of the central characters is based on Stephan Colloredo Mansfed.

Malafekas presented his latest  latest novel Deepfake and also did the reading of the excerpt from De Les Kouventa. The only available English translation is currently available through the "Warp of Time"book. 

Hydra's own literary journal Glotta introduced its second edition through a reading by its founding editor writer Hunter Dukes.

In an era increasingly defined by speed, Open House offers something rarer: sustained attention. Whether through marble shaped into impossible organic forms, photographs that question ownership and belonging, literary reflections on contemporary identity, or films that reinvent cinematic traditions, the program positions Hydra not simply as a backdrop but as an active participant in the creative process.