Aluminium screens

Set at the edge of a watercourse below the Harold Porter Botanical Garden, this modest new timber framed holiday house attempts to make the most of its natural surroundings in an uncomplicated way. Damian Schumann The house is positioned to the northeast of the site, screening off the neighbours and opening up towards the wetland on the western side.  Damian Schumann The long axis is orientated north-south towards a dramatic kloof in the mountains beyond. A large, glazed gable end and a clerestory window in the kitchen make the view part of the inhabitants’ everyday routine. By lifting the building off the ground, vegetation and wildlife is allowed to live right up to and under the building’s edge, while intimat... More

This project was completed under Meyer & Associates' previous iteration - MEYER+VORSTER.   The architects were briefed three years ago by a professional couple to design a small, low maintenance city residence in De Waterkant, which could be used during the week while they were involved with their medical practices. Their life would be shared between this house and a large weekend house at Aurora, a few hours from Cape Town. The clients emphasised that the design of the house had to be bespoke, with every aspect of it, purpose made and purpose designed around their specific needs, requirements and busy lifestyle. This instruction gave rise to a somewhat unorthodox spatial configuration and programme, developed in close consultati... More

The concept of the new Heideveld Primary School complex was borne from constraints experienced as part of the previous school location and layout as well as from the decanting strategy and programme, which was integral to the roll-out and construction process. The site is fairly small and the existing school operation had to be accommodated on site while the new school was being built. This gave rise to a compact and simple plan form, focused around a shared central courtyard, and two secondary undercover courtyard spaces, one for the foundation phase classes in a single storey block and the other for intermediate and senior phase classes in a double storey block. The hierarchy of shared spaces is a theme that runs throughout the design of... More

Du Noon Primary School is a replacement school, built as part of the Department of Basic Education’s Accelerated School Infrastructure Development Initiative (ASIDI) Programme.   The Du Noon Primary School site is located within very dense urban fabric, with properties fully built up, and the narrow streets lined with informal spaza shops, crèches, and informal house extensions. With open space in Du Noon being an absolute luxury, the streets are true public spaces, where, out of necessity, pedestrians take precedence over motor vehicles. The existing school operation had to be accommodated on the site, while the new school was built. Hence the new school had to be accommodated on the limited area available outside the e... More

The project entailed the development of a new Primary School, replacing the dilapidated Botha’s Halte farm school, in the Breede River Valley, for the Bosjes Trust. Although a privately sponsored project, the school is operated by the Western Cape Education Department. The new buildings provide a state-of-the-art facility for 250 rural primary school learners from a predominantly farm worker community. The buildings have been designed around sustainability principles, while respecting the cultural heritage of the area. A didactic design approach was followed, whereby these aspects are demonstrated throughout the complex as part of the teaching and educational processes.   The “Anna Zaal” (circa 1927), the first scho... More

Vibe Design Group’s Kelso project is a family home nestled amongst a heritage area within a wider industrial and commercial setting. The site is in proximity to the iconic Nylex clock near Richmond, Melbourne.The brief called for large open spaces in a modern timeless style and a home that could be an oasis from the city, with reminders of its locality. This is epitomized in the design with thoughtful integration of the light well and outdoor spaces that interact with the frequented living areas, giving it a vast sense of space. The use of uneven bluestone alludes to the cobbled Melbourne laneways while the express joint cladding and aluminum fins connect the house to its semi-industrial surroundings. The viewpoints on this project wer... More