Victor Victoria

PHOTOS: Greg Cox | PRODUCTION: Sumien Brink | WORDS: Laura Twiggs

This once-neglected old Victorian lady in Cape Town’s Fresnaye has been given a new lease on life. She is now a sleek, minimalist, indoor-outdoor entertainer’s dream.

I can’t stand elaborate finishes,’ confesses Jan-Heyn Vorster, a partner at Meyer + Vorster Architects. ‘To me, luxury is in reduction; there’s perfection in the pristine element. Simplicity is liberating but, unfortunately, it’s also unforgiving. Without the frills and all those extraneous bits that hide the imperfect, a house somehow has more integrity.’

These might sound like strange words from someone who, with his partner Pieter Bruwer, bought a typically ornate, typically poky ‘old lady’ of a Victorian house. But the house was bought on the strength of its wind-free location, the space it had to work with, and the sumptuousness of its back garden with its lemon tree.

Now, more than a year later, the ‘old lady’ has had new life breathed into her. With expansive decking, undercover parking, a sparkling living-level pool, enormous aluminium window sliders and a sleek, pared-down finish that matches both Jan-Heyn’s philosophy and the pair’s ultra-honed Italian greyhounds, Bea and Clara, she is far more hip than refined, more stylishly casual than uptight and, metaphorically, far more open and communicative than straight-laced and tight lipped.

Sense of solidity retained

Indoor spaces blur almost seamlessly with the pool deck and its expansive sea views, and the quiet back garden with its established trees and pergola-covered outdoor table is a cool oasis that’s an extension of the state-of-the-art kitchen and indoor dining area.

The property’s sturdy steel-and-timber front gate, on the street, becomes the front door – effectively doubling the living space. Upstairs doorways are floor sprung, with doors opening both ways to create fluid movement between the landing and the upstairs patio.

The ample bathroom space abuts a clean-lined bedroom where treasured items, such as the wooden Victorian bed, are an evocative echo of the house’s history. Other reminders are the original staircase, left intact, and the large dining table made of upstairs floor joists that were salvaged during the renovation.

Signature thick Victorian walls and high ceilings were retained, keeping the house’s sense of solidity. The new roof also has a Victorian feel: it’s corrugated iron in a Victorian profile.

‘What we retained,’ says Jan-Heyn, ‘were elements of character or soul, and they are more beautiful and noticeable in their new context than they were before.’

But gone are the froufrou-fussy details: there’s not a moulded ceiling, a decorative cornice, a bit of broekie lace or a skirting board in sight. And, according to the owners, they’re not missed.

Instead there’s an emphasis on the house’s vertical proportions – a sense of cathedral-like height – and a careful eye to exact and perfectly rendered finishes and proportions in everything from the lines of walls to light switches: even the taps are punctuation marks in this cohesive visual language. Nothing jars, nothing intrudes; there is seamless integration.

It’s also the perfect frame for Jan-Heyn’s and Pieter’s growing collection of South African art. Without visual distractions the works of William Kentridge, Walter Batiss, Robert Slingsby, Hardy Botha and others invite reflection and appreciation, and provide outbursts of colour and narrative that give depth to what could seem clinical.

Solace in simplicity

Clinical it’s not, but there’s plenty of discipline, symmetry – Jan-Heyn admits he’s a ‘tidy freak’ – and open-ended space. Walls are cut away from each other to create sight channels while retaining privacy, windows have extra height, glass is cleverly employed to diminish any sense of boundary, and every opportunity is taken to maximise garden elements that soften strict interior lines.

In her new incarnation the house works magnificently as an entertainment space. There’s a sense of greenery within an urban environment that is restorative, calming and cooling. Jan-Heyn and Pieter regularly have eight or 10 friends over for long lunches or dinners, where guests sip chilled Chardonnay and amble between the quiet, shady garden and the sundowner deck. Or they cluster around the bar counter while Pieter whips up deliciously simple fare such as baked fish with salads.

‘One of the best things about the house is the flow,’ says Jan-Heyn. ‘Because everything is so simple, people really relax. And we can focus on each other because there are very few distractions. We find we don’t want to go out anymore; we prefer to invite people here.’

Best of all is that when they do go out, it’s likely to be on foot. ‘No matter the time of year, there’s an abiding holiday feel in this neighbourhood,’ says Jan-Heyn. ‘We don’t need to take our cars – we walk our dogs on the nearby Sea Point promenade. And there’s a sense of community among people in the area. At the same time, however, there’s nothing suburban about it. We’re close to the city’s pulse; it’s very vibrant. It’s the best of both worlds.’

Which also sums up this masterful marriage of Victorian sensibility and minimalism.  

• Jan-Heyn Vorster, Meyer + Vorster Architects: 021 425 7257, 083 306 0246, www.meyervorster.co.za