Hellenistic revival- How the Ancient Greeks will inspire our homes in 2022

Greece is the word on everybody’s lips in 2022. This year, nostalgia will go back to its roots as people will take inspiration from Ancient Greece and invest in everything from Corinthian home décor to Aphrodite-inspired wallpaper. One of the youngest generations, Gen Z, is embracing this ancient trend more than anybody. When Pinterest announced that a Hellenistic revival was coming this year, I wasn’t overly convinced. However, I have started to see Ancient Greek influences everywhere and I actually think this could be really exciting for our homes. Searches for ‘Aphrodite aesthetic wallpaper’ is up 180%, Ancient Greece aesthetic is up 65% and ‘Greek statue art’ searches have tripled.

Read on to find out more about this historic trend.

What Is Hellenistic Revival?

Hellenistic Revival takes inspiration from Ancient Greece. The Hellenistic period in Mediterranean history spanned between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in 31 BC and the conquest of Ptolemaic Egypt the following year. It’s a period of history known for Greece’s establishment of cities and towns across Egypt, Asia and Persia, resulting in a melting pot of styles that are typical of the period.

The Hellenistic Revival we will be seeing this year will incorporate a lot of design elements from this period, with a 21st Century twist.

How to bring the Hellenistic Revival into your home

Aphrodite (the Greek goddess of love, beauty and fertility) was a sculpture particularly popular for the period, and it shows no signs of stopping for today. Search terms for ‘Aphrodite aesthetic wallpaper’ climbed +180%, which goes the same for ‘Greek statue art’ which rocketed three times the number of searches, compared to last year. This suggests that we are craving more comfort, self-care and love in our homes, after the past few years of pain.

Aphrodite’s symbols include roses, doves, sparrows and myrtle, and her colours reflect a Grecian sunset (think emerald, aqua, pale green, pink, violet, and any shade of blue), which make for a whimsical backdrop for any room.

2. Corinthian columns

Pinners are also searching for ‘Corinthian columns’ — which is the most ornate of column style of Ancient Greece, featuring a fluted narrow column, with acanthus leaves and volutes to decorate the capital (that’s the head of the column).

I have personally already started to see a lot of Hellenistic style home decor in my job. Below is Sass & Belle’s stand at Spring Fair 2022, Birmingham. It includes busts, greek urns and Corinthian column ornaments.

3. Busts and Statues

Decorative Greecian busts and statues will be huge this year. They are a great way of bringing a sense of Grandeur into your home. Bringing gods, goddesses and epic heroes into your artwork and decor is going to be really fun for our homes – why not choose the ones whose mythological powers best embody the energy you’d like to bring into the year ahead.

Don’t just think of traditional stone or marble statues though, these trending busts and sculptures will be bold, funky and bright. You may also see some bust style vases too!

Take a look at the styling image below. This is a marketing photo from Arte, to showcase their new wallpaper collection. They have styled their collections with Greek inspired busts and Corinthian columns.

4. Urns and shaped vases

Greek potters were constantly changing the shape of their famous vases and pots. In ancient Greece, it was not enough to create something that was beautiful. It also had to be comfortable. If the vase, pot, or pitcher had a handle, that handle had to be easy to hold and fit comfortably into the grip of your hand.

In Ancient Greece, these urns contained detailed pictures that told stories, and were usually finished in terracotta and black colours.  However, in 2022, expect to see plainer vases, in brighter colours.

5. Greek Key motif

In ancient Greece Greek Key’s appear in many architectural friezes, and in bands on the pottery of ancient Greece from the Geometric Period onwards. The design is common to the present-day in classicizing architecture.

Get the look in your home:

Shop the look: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14

Also, Arte have created a range of wallpapers that all hark back to the past. They have styled their collections with Greek inspired busts and Corinthian columns.

I don’t know about you, but I am very excited to see this trend in people’s homes. It is a trend that I definitely didn’t see coming! Would you add any of these elements to your home?

Speak to you soon,

Eve x