Award-winning Joburg-based furniture maker David Krynauw has designed a series of Living Pods – small, moveable and low-impact habitable spaces.

A space doesn’t have to be big to be beautiful, says David Krynauw. “Carefully considered and well-crafted design can add value to a small space. This permeates into the mind of the occupant which, in turn, creates a sense of wellbeing,” he explains.

Sitting lightly on the earth was top of mind when David set about designing his Living Pods. The task involved careful planning and conceptualising to create something eco-conscious, mobile and aesthetically pleasing. “Coming from a product design background, I’d like to think of the pods as large-scale furniture pieces,” he says.

“Each ‘piece’ is made for a specific application to suit its environment/space and specific requirements. It considers and interacts with its environment.”

David’s life-long experience with wood and its potential to be sustainable made it an obvious material choice. “To my mind it’s the best building material in the world,” he says. “I’m interested in the encapsulation of the entire value chain, so we take the timber from seedling to end product. The idea is to use the entire tree and the waste associated to keep it as close as possible to the original material.

“The Europeans have perfected this and it’s not really being done to full potential in South Africa. My aim is to change that. In theory, one could create a self-sustaining cycle with very limited external input in terms of materials and energy.”

Completely modular, collapsible and lightweight, each Living Pod is easy to assemble – making it the perfect option for remote and secluded locations out in nature, or on rooftops. “It can take anything from a few hours on a small structure to two weeks on a bigger building. This process is also enjoyable as seeing the structure pop up in a short amount of time is very rewarding.”

For more information, email david@davidkrynauw.com.

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Cape Town’s Gorgeous George hotel, featured in the new issue of VISI, boasts a rooftop bar and restaurant, Gigi Rooftop, designed by StudioA’s Tristan du Plessis.

Design-led Gorgeous George is the first hotel in Cape Town to join the Design Hotels stable, a bespoke collection of 300 privately-owned hotels dotted across 50 countries that showcase a unique creative expression, with a strong rooting in design, architecture and hospitality. Its crown, Gigi Rooftop, boasts a glinting emerald-green, glass-panelled swimming pool and an expansive wooden/terracotta-tiled pool deck bordered by luscious fronds and vistas of sun-bleached heritage buildings.

Tristan’s design of the resto-bar sees an industrial-style space brought to life by pops of deep blue, orange and green. It showcases contemporary pieces and locally manufactured furniture, with the 80-seater, indoor/outdoor space decked in and illuminated by bespoke items from the likes of David Krynauw, Gregor Jenkin, Studio 19 and Douglas&Co, as well as murals by artist David Brits.

Inspired by the intoxication of tropical-island romance, tiki bars and the captivating stories of well-travelled creatives, professional mixologist and former manager of Joburg’s Sin+Tax Jody Rahme has created a world-class cocktail menu dripping in exotic flavour and colourful execution to complement the eclectic space, while executive chef Guy Bennett plates up modern classics with a twist. Bottoms up!

See more projects by Tristan du Plessis here and read all about Gorgeous George on page 46 in the Winter Issue of VISI (VISI 102).

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Award-winning Joburg-based furniture designer David Krynauw is the seventh creative to collaborate with The Trenery Guild.

In addition to a wooden bench that David has designed to grace the Trenery Sandton City standalone store, he has hand-crafted a bespoke shoe horn packaged in an elegant wooden box.

The intention of these collaborations is to highlight Trenery’s dedication to quality and craftsmanship. David’s iconic furniture pieces undergo numerous steps, as do Trenery men’s shoes. In order for the handmade oxfords and brogues to receive the Trenery Goodyear Welting stamp of approval, they are submitted to a 100-step journey.

The horn and box are made from rich, traditionally smoked dark oak. “The contours of the foot are the main consideration in the design process,” explains David. “A shoe horn has to curve both ways and follow the heel exactly. We achieved this through an experimental moulding process and are very happy with the result.”

Produced in limited numbers, the horn and box will be available as a gift with purchase to qualifying customers at select Trenery stores from the beginning of November 2018.

Check out The Trenery Guild’s most recent collab with ceramicist Lisa Firer here. 

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What is the point of a wedding? For Lezanne Viviers, Creative Director at Marianne Fassler, and her husband, Walter Anderson, their January wedding was not just about them but also about the people who’re integral to their lives. That was the starting point for planning their big day.

I had a surreal vision for our wedding. I wanted to invite our guests into my dream world. I imagined a playground where adults and children alike would play and discover hidden treasures as they moved through the space without any preconceived ideas. And I wanted it to be a festival of love.

On the day, no rules applied. The festivities took place at 44 French Lane in Sandton, a 5 ha property in the middle of the city that stuns one with its sense of serenity. It is where furniture designer David Krynauw currently lives and works, and on display is his complete Play collection, which is fit for adults and children alike. A modular timber chapel, also designed by David, formed the central point of our otherwise blank canvas.

When I started to envision the tables, the flowers and the food, I soon realised nothing I desired was available; I would have to make everything from scratch. Walter and I started to take pottery lessons at Anne Rimbault Pottery Studio, where I was able to mould my wildest, most surreal dreams into ceramic objects. We created two individual ranges of vases, ashtrays and candleholders, and I made cake toppers and chicken-feet brooches, all contributors to my vision of the perfect wedding celebration.

I ordered the Salvador Dalí cookbook Dalí: Les Diners de Gala, with recipes from restaurants such as Maxim’s in Paris, and it became the main inspiration for the fantastic food prepared by Sandy’s Kitchen. Food was served on ceramic platters I’d made; crockery found at auctions and antiques shops; matte-black stoneware plates made by the #Artisafire charity; and starter and dessert plates made by my mom and a friend. Like clay, these memories are unique to the hands that sculpted each element like the spontaneous ikebana installations on every table.

My wedding memories also include many excursions to the flower market, a two-hour drive to Brits to pick lotus pods, and a quick stop at a church in Norwood to tie the knot legally. Now these are the memories I like to collect!

My dream day could not have come true without the hands, the laughter and the talent of the community that helped me. Thank you to my mom, Cynette Viviers; my bridesmaids; and Francois Tielman de Villiers, Melissa Fontini and Elsa Roux for helping with the creative production and installation. Without the input and creative brilliance of each and every one of these pivotal players in my community, our day would not have been the fairy-tale festival it turned out to be. Intensely personal, yet apparently effortless.

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A movable transparent facade bonds the interior of this contemporary Pretoria home with its remarkable natural setting.

“Nothing that looks like a house.” This was the brief to architect Nadine Engelbrecht at the conceptual stage of her clients’ new home in Zwavelpoort, east of Pretoria. “It took me four or five proposals to figure out what that meant,” she recalls.

For homeowners Charmaine and Andre Freyer (who happen to be Nadine’s parents), inspiration came in the form of an unpretentious barn conversion. What materialised was a contemporary glass house with bricked extensions on either side. “Our previous home was in a valley, so I really wanted views this time round,” says Charmaine.

The house sits at the upper end of a 36 ha stretch of land that drops down towards Zwavelpoort Spruit. Capitalising on the location, Nadine incorporated 16 photovoltaic panels and three dams in the design, taking the house off-grid.

A steel-and-glass skin is all that separates much of the home from the landscape, and the absence of blinds and curtains bolsters the dwelling’s bond with the outdoors. Living, kitchen and dining areas run perpendicular to the barn-shaped conservatory at the core of the house, allowing the Freyers to close sections off for temperature regulation. Ceiling fans, ribbon windows and strategic overhangs also aid in thermal control.

Picture entering the voluminous conservatory with its more-than-6 m-high roof. Light washes in from windows, doors and skylights, and inside you’re greeted by a profusion of happy indoor plants. The floor seems to disappear beneath you where a glass panel reveals a subterranean wine cellar. Then, as though in a scene from a James Bond movie, a colossal mechanised glass door (a sexy cousin to the garage variety) rises at the flick of a switch, connecting you intimately with the outdoors. If “nothing that looks like a house” was the brief, this is indeed a triumph.

“This idea of having a view of the landscape from everywhere in the house, and bringing the views and greenery into the core of the conservatory, means it’s not a case of inside versus outside; it’s all the same thing,” says Nadine.

Charmaine is an admirer of South African design, and notable contemporary furniture pieces feature in every room: A David Krynauw chandelier, a Laurie Wiid van Heerden bench, a Gregor Jenkin table and Ronel Jordaan chairs mingle with pieces that bear the signs of the passage of time. For Charmaine, there’s no bigger turn-off than a one-size-fits-all approach.

The length of the house faces north, towards the plunging cleft in the mountain that gives the area its name, but the Freyers’ bedroom and balcony claim the lion’s share of the views down the escarpment, covered with indigenous trees and grasses. It’s here, on the balcony, that they sit and sip the best wines from their cellar as they watch the sun go down over Bronberg, an extension of the Magaliesberg range.

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An antiquarian collection was the catalyst for a collaborative art installation that involves rare books, storytelling, beautiful photographs and a stunning bookcase.

This is the story of a rare collection comprising thousands of documents, prints, artworks, and books, books and more books. And intertwined with it is a story of love, heartache and a bunch of creative people, among them a one-of-a-kind photographer and a brilliant cabinetmaker.

Once upon a time, around 1904, a man who sold Singer sewing machines, Frank R Thorold, established Thorolds Bookshop in Johannesburg. After his death, Robin Fryde, an authority on Africana, took over the collection and grew it into an antiquarian treasure trove. And after his passing, a collector named Neillen van Kraayenburg bought it and moved everything to his farm in Kya Sands.

Neillen, the partner of well-known photographer Merwelene van der Merwe, died unexpectedly in 2015, so she became the custodian of this precious collection on Thorolds Book Farm. Together with her sisters, Hannalie Bruwer en Vanya Matania, Merwelene has been handling, opening, exploring, assessing and considering these treasures. And so, with input from Juanita Køtzé, aka The Rare Librarian, the books have led to new expressions in an artistic collaboration involving Thorolds, The Rare Library and various artists.

One of these artists is furniture designer David Krynauw, who designed and built a bookcase out of solid walnut for exhibiting 31 books dating from 1590 to 1740 on the topics of the law and jurisprudence. It is the first piece in his new Heritage range.

Furniture designer David Krynauw; his muse, Jasmyn Pretorius; his dogs, Kaptein and Rankie; and the bookcase made out of solid walnut.

His affinity for Cape Dutch furniture is reflected in this modern interpretation of an armoire, an amazing artwork to complete the installation Vertoonkas, which was performed at the Woordfees in Stellenbosch in March.

The rare-book installation is for sale for R450 000 – call 082 414 9829. Visit the klyntji.com to see a series of photo and video narratives that formed part of Vertoonkas.

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Leaders of South African design were honoured at the fifth annual Design Foundation Awards held in Cape Town.

The 2017 awards signal a fresh approach by the Design Foundation, formerly known as the Southern Guild Design Foundation. “With our independent think-tank board representing diverse industries, our aim is to have a foundation that supports the design industry at large – from grassroots and educational levels to manufacture, retail and export,” explains board member Trevyn McGowan.

Krone is the sponsor of the prestigious Icon Award, won by Gregor Jenkin, who was also the inaugural recipient of this award in 2012. The recently-opened tasting room at Twee Jonge Gezellen (go on a tour of it with VISI here) is furnished exclusively with South African furniture and fittings and is testament to Krone’s support of local entrepreneurs in design and manufacturing.

The awards were judged by a Design Foundation board sub-committee, after nominations were received from past winners and an external jury of industry insiders that included our very own Sumien Brink and Annemarie Meinjies, Cathy O’Clery of Platform Creative Agency, curator and interior designer Tracy Lynch (responsible for Twee Jonge Gezellen’s interiors), Tiaan Nagel of House and Leisure, and Leigh Robertson and Ntombenhle Shezi of ELLE Decoration, as well as nominations from tertiary institutions for the Apprentice Award.

“We believe [design] has the ability to change South Africa, and by supporting local design we’re investing in a positive future,” said Abigail Rands, Marketing Director of Krone.

Icon Award

Image credit: Pieter Maltbie

Winner: Gregor Jenkin
Sponsor: Krone
Awarded in recognition of work produced in the last 12 months, acknowledging outstanding achievement, innovation and career advancement.

Object That Moves Award

Winner: willowlamp
Sponsor: 100% Design South Africa
Celebrates an original product that has experienced great commercial success – aspirational and top-end, yet commercially viable to sell in multiples.

Maker to Market Award

Winner: Robin Sprong Wallpaper
Sponsor: M&C Saatchi Abel
Awarding a design company that understands the value of marketing, consumer interaction, packaging and delivery. 

Manufacture Award

Winner: Ngwenya Glass (Chas and Cathy Prettejohn)
Sponsor: Bronze Age
Recognising a manufacturer who has gone beyond expectation to aid designers in realising their products.

Future Found Award

Winner: Thabisa Mjo (Mash.T Design Studio)
Sponsor: Von Seidels
Celebrating a young designer who has already achieved excellence with limited resources.

Apprentice Award

Winner: Keitumetse Maake (University of Johannesburg)
Sponsor: David Krynauw
Awarding the winner a 12-month internship to work alongside this designer, craftsman and manufacturer.

Design With Purpose Award

Winner: SolarTurtle (James van der Walt, Lungelwa Tyali and Charlene Barnes)
Sponsor: AfriSign
Recognising socially responsible work done by a company, within the South African landscape, with a focus on design aspects, that makes a difference in the lives of communities.

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Southern Guild will be taking a curated selection of South African design to Design Miami 2017, taking place from 6 – 10 December.

The gallery will be taking the work of Madoda Fani, Justine Mahoney, Adam Birch, Paco Pakdoust, Andile Dyalvane, Trevor Potter, Charles Haupt, David Krynauw, Otto du Plessis, Dokter and Misses, Jan Bekker, Porky Hefer, Meyer von Wielligh, Jesse Ede and John Vogel.

In this Q&A with Trevyn McGowan, co-founder of The GUILD Group, she talks to us about the feverish international interest in local art and design and what it means to be at Design Miami.

How do you think the voice of the African continent is currently being received and perceived in the international design world?

In the 15 years that we have been working with African design in a global context, I have been aware that the focus on Africa has steadily intensified. Interest in our product and inspiration drawn from our aesthetic, stories and cultures appear across many industries and an African sensibility permeates countless trends. Our exports of design pieces has also grown steadily with a significant number of new private and commercial clients each year. I think that the opening of Zeitz MOCAA, and the establishment of the Silo District by the V&A Waterfront, is one of the most important developments in bringing international attention to the continent.

In your opinion, why is the work of artist-designers and their free expression so important to the authenticity of creativity in the art and design industries?

Designers have to be groundbreaking, they have to have a unique viewpoint and a distinct voice and they have to have their own, specific narrative. As Africans, we can’t emulate design from other parts of the world, it isn’t at all interesting. We have such a unique and authentic starting point that this is what we need to draw on. One of our biggest focuses as curators is encouraging designers to forge their own paths, to study what the rest of the world is producing, and in doing so ensure that their perspective is fresh.

Since the founding of Southern Guild in 2008 how far would you say you and Julian are in accomplishing the vision you set out achieve?

No matter how much ground you cover there is always so much more to achieve, but I can say we are immensely proud of how far our industry has come. The quality of the production, the vision of the work and the confidence of both our established design heroes and younger, emerging stars is incredibly gratifying. We provided a platform and a framework and the designers rose magnificently to the challenge and opportunity. You only have to look at how far the work has come in the 10 years since we started and how our customer base is now split 50/50 local and international as South Africans begin to understand the category and the value of investment purchasing. We still have a huge amount that we want to do and you have to keep pushing in new directions. The plans for next year include participating at several new fairs, gallery partnership projects and developing new designers from different disciplines. We are also so happy in our new GUILD gallery space, which allows for so many more projects than before.

Do any of the pieces in the curated collection that you’re taking to Design Miami 2017 tell a particular story that resonates with you personally?

We are very connected with all of the work for Miami and of course finishing the year with what, for us, is the best fair in the world gives us a great opportunity to select the most important work from the year. A highlight is always what Porky Hefer produces – this year it is a sublime leather Toucan hanging seat (a collaborative piece with Woodheads) – we have sold his pieces to some of the most important collectors around the world from the fair, including the National Gallery of Victoria, a leading design museum. We are also extremely excited about showing seven of Andile Dyalvane’s works from his recent solo at GUILD Silo, Indladla. Andile has a very strong collector base in the US, including a top gallery we collaborate with, Friedman Benda. Meyer von Wielligh has produced an extraordinary large-scale, carved timber table and sideboard inspired by lightning strikes. In all, we will show over 30 pieces in our biggest selection to date.

5. What do you hope to take away from the Design Miami 2017 experience and bring back to SA and Southern Guild specifically?

Miami, during the art and design fairs, is the absolute highlight of our year. The city is so stimulating over this time with dozens of art fairs, performances, pop-ups and events, that you can’t look in any direction without being assaulted with stimulation and inspiration. We connect with our colleagues in the industry, including other global galleries, designers we have developed close friendships with [sic] like the Haas Brothers and Misha Khan, and we work with our partner galleries like R and Company on our collaborations for the coming year.

We learn so much as we spend seven days viewing the most important design in the world from the other 33 galleries that participate. Most importantly, we re-establish our own confidence in our work and our path, as the sales at the fair for South African design are always so strong. Starting every day in a warm turquoise sea and finishing it at a super hot party doesn’t hurt either.

For more information about GUILD, visit theguildgroup.co.za.

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We caught up with designer David Krynauw, the creative behind the local solid wood furniture studio, ahead of his talks at the Business of Design conferences in Cape Town (11 – 12 October) and Johannesburg (18 – 19 October).

When did you know that you wanted to be a designer?

As a kid, I wanted to be an inventor. I was raised in a home where we were encouraged to make things as opposed to buying things. Not much has changed. I became a designer by default but I will always be an inventor at heart. My need to invent inspires my will to design.

What do you love most about working with wood?

Wood is the most versatile medium on earth. It possesses such diverse qualities which sets every piece apart from the next. It is incredibly strong, with a strength to weight ratio stronger than steel. Wood is sustainable and has the potential to be used more widely in construction. I think that it is entirely underrated as a material. It is a privilege to be able to work with it daily.

The Longleg Barstool in Ash Timber and Powdercoated Lasher Yellow. What do you think, is yellow your color? – . . . . . . . #Furniture#FurnitureDesign#furnituremaker#solidwood#interiordesigns#bespoke#modernfurniture#designers#instadesign#surfacemag#woodwork#joinery#cabinetmaker#dowoodworking#woodshop#craftmanship#matterstore#woodcraft#dowoodworking#finefurniture#residence#designermaker#localzadesign#d_signers#minimalfurniture

A post shared by David Krynauw (Pty) Ltd (@davidkrynauwontwerp) on Jun 20, 2017 at 11:14am PDT

Tell us more about the chapel you recently completed. Is it the first of many David Krynauw-designed structures?

The chapel is a proof of concept and will serve as our first showroom in Morningside. This method of production can be applied to an endless array of products where the size of the structure depends on the sum of its parts. Our intention is to use this tool in order to develop various solutions ranging from living pods, event structures and buildings to interactive play equipment and anything you can think of.

From a distance… . . . Our first building, a work in progress. Currently incomplete and surrounded by a beautiful green garden. Have a look at our page for some more photos. #davidkrynauwbou #davidkrynauwontwerp #44french #woodenarchitecture #architecture

A post shared by David Krynauw (Pty) Ltd (@davidkrynauwontwerp) on Mar 3, 2017 at 2:35am PST

Which one of your designs have you most enjoyed working on, and why?

Every designed project possesses its own unique challenges. New development pushes the boundaries of the current frame of work, which is always enjoyable and a great privilege to be able to do. My journey thus far had several highlights ranging from the Haywire that showed me what it is to push the boundaries, to the proof of concept for Kas 1, which was a defining moment for our production method that we currently use. Onto our first building and hopefully many more exciting projects to come.

Wednesday Inspiration: Small changes can reap great rewards?? . . . We made a slightly curved Haywire especially for @designmiami from Panga Panga solid wood and copper fittings, delivering the classic design with a more organic feel ? . . #CurvedHaywire #Haywire

A post shared by David Krynauw (Pty) Ltd (@davidkrynauwontwerp) on Feb 1, 2017 at 1:34am PST

Why is a conference like Business of Design important?

I think it is important because you get the opportunity to inspire and be inspired. There are a lot of learning curves involved in starting and growing a business in South Africa. We have a unique stance in the world of design. The more we can learn from each other and stand together, the stronger we will grow as an industry. This, in turn, will make us greater as a country on a global scale.

Our latest collectable design piece for @southernguildgallery as part of their exhibition entitled Transformation . . . #JeppestownPlayBench

A post shared by David Krynauw (Pty) Ltd (@davidkrynauwontwerp) on Jan 20, 2017 at 2:01am PST

What’s next for 2017?

I am currently working on a new piece to be released with Southern Guild at Design Miami, which will be exhibited at the start of December. Other than that, we are also opening our showroom in Morningside and finalising our first building. Exciting times!

View David’s work at davidkrynauw.com.

*VISI reader offer: Pay only R3 500 instead of R3 950 for the two-day Business of Design conference in Cape Town (11 – 12 October) or Johannesburg (18 – 19 October). To take up this offer, email tracy@businessofdesign.co.za with VISI as the subject. To view the full programme in each city, visit businessofdesign.co.za.

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Dokter and Misses

Tonic

Monn

Generation

Lemon X Joe Paine

David Krynauw

Design Team

100 Beautiful Things

To find out more about this annual event, visit 100percentdesign.co.za.

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