Architect Johann Slee and his wife René peeled away the layers of time to reveal the true colours of a humble fisherman’s cottage in the small West Coast hamlet of Paternoster.

This three-roomed fisherman’s cottage in Kliprug sits above the main beach, atop a large boulder, where it weathers Atlantic storms and presides over the daily comings-and-goings of the fishing boats.

When the Slee family were looking for a weekend getaway where they could enjoy an ocean view, it was the distinctive character and authenticity of Paternoster that resonated with them. Situated just an hour-and-a-half’s drive from their Stellenbosch residence, the slow-paced village offered the Slees a perfect respite.

Johann and René bought a plot across from the derelict cottage for their new weekend home but then decided to take the building under their wing to use as a spill-over cottage. They set to work renovating it, conscious of retaining its character. Johann tackled the more architectural aspects, while René took care of the interior.

Besides giving it a fresh coat of white paint and brand-new shutters, Johann enclosed a small courtyard with gum-pole latticework to create a buffer between the street and the front door. Here, beach towels and swimwear are hung out to dry and freshly caught fish can be cleaned. On the beach side, a stoep that runs the length of the house was added. Again, Johann used the gum-pole latticework, combined here with a simple pulley system to create flexible screens that act as sunshades but can also be closed up completely. The stoep becomes the ultimate outdoor room with generous chairs and day beds that beg for naps in the dappled afternoon sunlight.

Inside the cottage, layers of dirt and grime were stripped away to reveal a colourful history layered on the walls. Instead of covering it up, Johann and René decided to keep the mottled walls as a backdrop to the cosy interior. 

René’s deft touch at arranging vintage and antique store finds intermingled with heirlooms gives the cottage an eclectic and rustic comfort. “You can play with things that wouldn’t necessarily work in your normal home because they may be too rustic or cottagey. Here, they work, because it can be more relaxed.”

It’s the mix of unusual colours, antique furniture and Johann’s art that makes this holiday home what it is: a characterful, cosy and welcoming place to unwind and soak up all the charm of the Cape’s magnificent West Coast.   

An edited version of the article published in VISI 56.

For more information visit slee.co.za

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The inhospitable Richtersveld coast is home to an extraordinary development that seamlessly melds this arid World Heritage Site with architecture, installation art and the rural community.

Port Nolloth is an odd kind of place. In the solid light of day, some of its working-class homes look distinctly forlorn. But some mornings, as the malmokkie – a thick bank of mist that often settles over the town for the entire day – pushes inland from the Atlantic Ocean, the fishermen and diamond divers’ stories are given a twist, wooden shacks become palaces and, miraculously, mosaic letters spell out residents’ names on walls.

It is precisely this cool haziness, even at the height of summer, that drew Jimmy and Annelize du Toit, an attorney and a mathematical statistician, here in 1991. In 2000, they initiated the ambitious KaiKai residential development in partnership with the Richtersveld municipality. The Nama word for “to cultivate, to elevate with praise or to nurture with pride”, KaiKai is no ordinary residential development. A strong emphasis is placed on uplifting the surrounding community by not only using local labour and materials, but also through the Gaudi-inspired Wall of Expression. 

The “border-shifting” boundary wall adorned with tile and quartz mosaics now almost surrounds the development without cutting it off from the rest of the community. Residents have depicted their dreams and aspects of their daily lives on it. Still a work in progress, the wall now bears 7 500 names of Port Nolloth’s 12 000 residents.

“Jimmy’s got a thing for art,” says Annelize. This is evidenced by the mosaics that continue inside the Du Toits’ own beach house, designed by architect Chris Wilkinson and built by Piet Malgas. 

It was Jimmy who designed the kelp-forest pattern in the guest bathroom and that of the master bedroom’s en-suite bathroom. He also created the expanse of red mosaics in the kitchen – an abstract of the dorsal fins of edible fish found in local waters. 

The living room is home to two more of Jimmy’s creations: A bookcase made of thick wooden beams and paper-thin steel, and wall panels he describes as “three-dimensional interpretations of  Piet Mondrian paintings”. 

“Port Nolloth isn’t Plett or Umhlanga. We like to turn things upside down – including common ideas of what a beach house should look like,” explains Annelize.   

For more information, visit kaikai.co.za

Looking for more architectural inspiration? Take a look at this Yzerfontein beach house.

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In this Cape mountain-and-sea house, the wind and water can make you quite light-headed.

With its understated colours of rock, stone, dune, air and water, this wooden house is luxurious in both its location and simplicity. During the day, full-length glass windows and doors open on an outside world of wildflowers strewn on the dune in front of the house. At night, white American shutters seal out darkness and storms.

The decor is strongly influenced by the New World interiors of wooden houses from Nantucket and Cape Cod. The airy rooms evoke a sense of order, form and composure, while French-style furniture gives a sense of elegance.

Starting from the long dining table and chairs that came from France, interior designer Christo Barnard of Fine Stellenbosch Interiors expanded the theme with foolproof intuition. “My client knew exactly what she wanted, and her picture and my picture complemented each other,” he says. “For example, I took one of the dining chairs that she bought overseas to a carpenter and asked him to make a cupboard that matches.”

The unique location of the home also determines many things. “You would be dishonouring nature if you did not build on the colours and textures that surround the house. It is fitting that one picks fynbos flowers for such a place; after all, the dune is the house’s garden. So shell, stone and sky became the inspiration for a house that is a reflection of what is outside.”

The pervasive painting technique and use of white create the feeling that everything is ultimately one, so that inside and outside are a seamless whole. When it comes to textures, the coolness of pure cotton and linen dominate.

The same light touch is seen in the decorations on the walls. Bare windows in which nature alone is framed, enhance the sense of light and space.

It’s the kind of place where you just don’t want to stop watching once you are seated in one of the deck chairs with arms just wide enough for an elbow and a book.

This article was originally published in VISI 63.

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Make the most out of the last few summer weekends with these indulgent outdoor loungers and shades.

Puzzle pleasure

With the innovative outdoor furniture designs of Ego Paris now available in South Africa, relaxing outside doesn’t have to mean letting your sense of style slip.

The Puzzle EM7 comprises nine pieces in total – four chairs, two loungers and two coffee tables in fabric-covered foam, as well as one aluminium side table. When you’re done in the sun, they all stack up into an architectural sculpture. This Tetris-like concept was inspired by Verner Panton’s legendary Living Tower sofas of the 1960s.

The Puzzle EM7 pieces are available in a variety of bold mix-and-match colours and finishes, with more than 300 possible combinations.

egoparis.com
Available at Cane Time from R12 000 per piece, 021 510 1072, canetime.com

Lounge around 

Because there’s nothing better than lounging about on a summer afternoon in South Africa, and now you can bring the luxury of a boutique hotel right to your own patio. Why not make every day feel like a holiday? 

South African outdoor furniture designer and manufacturer Bloc Outdoor is known for supplying tranquil holiday destinations, such as game reserves and beachfront boutique hotels, with stylish outdoor furniture. 

However, the Bloc Outdoor experience is not limited to holiday escapes. With the Serengeti range, you can take that beachfront hotel experience home with you. Our favourite piece from the range to chill on this summer is this double lounger (R17 995, including cushions) with height-adjustable matching backrests. When the sun gets a bit much and tanning turns into roasting, fit the parasol (R4 995) into the hole in the centre. 

Poolside, seaside or garden patio, it’s a great way to lie back, relax and enjoy the long summer days.

To get your hands on this magnificient piece, or browse the rest of the Serengeti range, visit Bloc Outdoor- 021 461 3506, outdoorfurniture.co.za

Life is a picnic

At the core of Belgian brand Extremis’ design philosophy is a simple phrase, “Tools for togetherness”. Their new line of picnic furniture shows even greater space for togetherness, and is transforming picnics into extremely stylish affairs. 

The seemingly endless picnic table from its new nautically inspired Marina line is the perfect embodiment of that phrase. With a length of up to 12m, the table can sit more than 40 people. Theoretically it can be as long as you want, even double the length, “but in that case the customer has to come and pick up his table himself,” jokes Extremis founder Dirk Wynants. It’s also available in a smaller size and can be customised with or without detachable chairs to create a free-standing table.

The Marina line is not Extremis’s first foray into picnic furniture. Even though the Hopper table is just over a year old, it is already considered a classic because it has won six international design awards.

As an accessory to the popular piece, Extremis has now created the Hopper shade (left). An adjustable Teflon-coated sunshade, it perfectly follows the lines of the Hopper table. The shade is available in the same variations as the table – a four, six, eight or 10-seater. 

Now you can elevate the humble beach picnic to a stylish gathering – something the VISI team wholeheartedly endorses.

Extremis, extremis.be
Ora the Outdoor Boutique, oraoutdoor.com

Foolproof brolly

This umbrella is the ultimate summer accessory for those long, hot days on the deck. The aptly named “Powerbrella” distinguishes itself from other umbrellas by its completely stainless-steel mechanism and lack of pins, pulleys and latches. Its super-sleek “finger-light” mechanism makes it a cinch to open and close, which means you’ll spend more time lying in the shade than fighting with your umbrella. It’s available in square and hexagonal shapes, and sizes start at 4.6m² and go up to 8.1m².

Available at Shade Forever from R6 500, 021 670 8100, shadeforever.biz

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Passing the salt has never been easier as the Lazy Susan makes a stylish comeback!

Although we live in a “revival” culture, it’s almost hard to believe that one-time suburban icon the Lazy Susan could make a comeback from the grimy Chinese takeouts it had been relegated to. Invented in the 1800s and known as a dumbwaiter, this rotating table fixture was first referred to as a Lazy Susan in a Good Housekeeping article in 1906. It peaked in the 1950s before slipping into obscurity until, earlier this year, Wallpaper commissioned industrial designers the Rockwell Group to reinvent it. They came up with the Sliding Susan.

In South Africa, three Lazy Susans are available from @home in bamboo or glass – the latter has a pattern that animates when it spins. We think it’s a great way to make the table more interactive.

@home home.co.za

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A new collection at Cane Time brings the idea of luxury outdoor camping to the city, creating an idyllic space to chill and shelter from the stress of urban living.

Dedon’s City Camp collection takes outdoor lounging to an entirely new level. Inspired by the camps of ancient explorers, it was designed by Annette Hinterwirth as an all-in-one outdoor living unit for the modern nomad. “Wherever you are, by the sea, in the desert or on a rooftop, it is your retreat, your shelter, a place to eat, drink, relax, sleep or just be with family and friends. It can even be an outdoor guest room,” she says. The City Camp collection consists of a garden swing, double day bed, and single and double beach chairs with storage and side tables.

Available from Cane Time for R150 000, canetime.com

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Your body is a temple, and now you can accessorise it appropriately with Michael Cope’s miniature shrines set on rings.

“I’ve always been fascinated by jewellery’s potential to mark out a piece of personalised or sacred space on the body,” says goldsmith and poet Michael Cope. Inspired by Jewish betrothal rings from the Italian Renaissance that depicted miniature temples, he has created a series of rings, including the three shown here made of silver and agate, and silver and paua shell.

Each building is significant. One, containing a bust of Voltaire, is dedicated to reason (top), another recalls an ancestor who was the rector of a Norman church in Staffordshire (middle) and the third captures the memory of a holiday in Tuscany (bottom). The perfect gift for the person who has it all. 

The rings are priced from R2 000 to R3 000 from Michael Cope and the Casa Labia Cultural Centre in Muizenberg, Cape Town.

Michael Cope 021 788 2083, cope.co.za, mcope@mweb.co.za

Casa Labia Cultural Centre 021 788 6068, casalabia.co.za

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South African designer Stephen Lamb and artist Andrew Lord wowed audiences in Shanghai with his magical upside-down mushroom forest, and is now back in Cape Town to try his low-cost growing concept on home turf.

South African designer Stephen Lamb and artist Andrew Lord have returned triumphantly from China after building the entrance pavilion for the ninth Shanghai Biennale. 

Stephen was invited to design the pavilion by the Litre of Light Foundation in Brazil, after they saw his work on the Climate Smart Cape Town stand at the United Nations COP17 conference held in Durban last year. The stand harvested water from the clouds, grew 3 800 organic vegetable seedlings in recycled 2-litre milk bottles and generated its own electricity by harnessing wind and solar energy. While Stephen was in China, the stand won a silver Loerie Award.

Having the chance to take his work to a global platform in Shanghai was the real award though. To realise this ambitious project in just three months, Stephen collaborated with Andrew and founder of Litre of Light Illac Diaz, not to mention the indispensable Chinese first-year art student who volunteered as translator. After two months of planning, the third month was spent in China, working hands-on with local suppliers and supporters. Still, time was tight.

“We worked through the night for the last three days, without sleep, and made the opening time of 10am with four hours to spare. We walked back to the hotel as the sun rose over Shanghai, with a sense of joint achievement, and slept for the entire day. When we returned we found the pavilion overflowing with people, cameras out, abuzz with excitement and wows,” enthuses Stephen.

Wow indeed when you see the result: a magical upside-down bamboo forest sprouting exquisite mushrooms. Art or reality? This highly functional method of growing mushrooms was literally invented by Stephen and his team during their month in China. 

The method relies heavily on the Litre of Light “lamps”. A gobsmackingly simple idea, a Litre of Light “lamp” is just a 2-litre soda bottle filled with water and a dash of bleach to prevent algae growth. The bottles are fitted into windowless shack roofs, creating the cheapest skylights imaginable. The dappled light that is provided is perfect for growing mushrooms.

The Shanghai mushroom forest was housed in a corrugated-iron enclosure and also acts as a prototype for low-cost housing. “We wanted to show that the ‘wood and corrugated iron’ aesthetic in South Africa does not need to represent oppression and poverty. We wanted to show that we can build low-cost structures that look contemporary and that offer light-filled spaces in which to grow plants, families and healthy communities,” Stephen explains.

The beauty of international recognition is that now Stephen’s years of campaigning for the City of Cape Town to try out his ideas are paying off. His first project, a roof garden in Wale Street, is already a success and he hopes that more will get going. He is also looking forward to introducing the mushroom-growing concept locally – we can’t wait to taste them! 

touchingtheearthlightly.com

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This simple, Japanese designed house may be the ultimate pack-up-and-go holiday home. 

The beautifully minimalist Ism House by International Royal Architecture in Japan reduces a holiday home to a bold white arrow. In fact, from straight on, the brilliant white plane makes it look as if a house-shaped hole has been cut out from the surroundings.

In a way, it is cut out, as the house stands in the middle of a field of weeds without an ocean or mountain view. The larger area was supposed to be developed as a resort but the site boundary and road location are being contended, stalling development. In the meantime, the fishing-loving client sought an abode.

Built to provide simply the basic living necessities, the inward-facing structure is clad in waterproof fibreglass-reinforced polymer. Double barn doors on either side open a passage through the middle – not dissimilar to Gavin Rooke’s holiday home featured in VISI 62. The passage serves as a terrace and parking garage.

Glass sliding doors access the living spaces on either side of the passage. These spaces are also connected through an attic mezzanine intended as an open-plan sleeping area. Small, precisely positioned windows and skylights bounce natural light throughout the house.

Do you need much more when, let’s face it, you’re going to spend all day on the beach?

iraap.jp

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VISI first featured the ombre trend in 2009 when we showcased the work of Malian designer Aboubakar Fofana in VISI 41. Since then it’s spread like wildfire, from hair and clothing to home furnishings and layered cakes.

The term “ombre” comes from the French for “gradation” or “shading” and has its roots in the 1970s, when it was embraced as a move-on from the hippie tie-dye trend. Like a lot of fabric trends, it has benefited from digital printing techniques that make it possible for a textile designer to print smaller runs with countless colour possibilities. 

Ombre colours vary from conservative neutral tones to an assortment of bright, saturated colours. When painting walls, the easiest way to apply this technique is to use the lightest shade at the top and gradually introduce a darker shade as you move towards the floor. This creates a striking background for indoor furniture. 

Ombre can also work to dramatic effect when applied directly to tables, sofas and chairs, as it can create the impression that the object is disappearing into its surroundings.

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