Designed and previously owned by one of the giants of American Modernist architecture, Arthur Witthoefft, this upstate New York house built in 1957 has been sympathetically restored by its current owners.

Very few homes in the area when Arthur Witthoefft, a partner at well-known Manhattan architectural firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, first bought this parcel of forest in the late 1950s. And as one might expect of an East Coast architect in the golden era of the Mid-century aesthetic, the 7.5m x 29m geometric block he designed in the greenery of the hamlet of Armonk looked nothing like the prevalent colonial architecture that surrounded it. In fact, local residents initially thought the structure emerging among the trees was a motel.

The house served as the Witthoefft family home for many years, but after their children moved out, Arthur and his wife Eleanor eventually relocated to Florida. Many new owners followed – some with a passion for the house, some not. One of them owned the property for seven years, but never lived there. Fortunately, the resilient steel-structured house survived; even more fortunate is the fact that it’s now owned by two 1950s aficionados. The couple had left Palm Springs and travelled towards cooler climes, looking for a new home to live in. Despite the building being somewhat dilapidated when they first saw it, they could appreciate its intrinsic value.

Priority number one was a home to equal the Mid-century Palm Springs residence they’d left behind. “Of all the projects we had scouted and visited during our research, this house in Armonk was the only one that really left us speechless,” says one of the owners. But first, they needed to restore it. “When we first saw it, it was badly affected by fungal rot, and water was seeping through the roof.”

More good fortune followed: not only was Arthur Witthoefft still alive, he was happy to advise on the project. The plan was to have the house renovated to its 1950s state, and after supplying the original drawings, Witthoefft regularly visited the construction site as an enthusiastic consultant, happy to see his former home sympathetically restored. The renovation and remodelling took two years to complete; during this time, the owners camped in their master bedroom, which had temporarily been equipped with additional radiators for warmth, a small fridge and a stove. Wanting to retain as much of the original design as possible, both of them wanted to stay on-site to keep an eye on every detail. It was a bit of a balancing act to retain the original features while making changes where necessary – but when in doubt, Witthoefft was consulted. This approach helped to preserve almost 80% of the original structure, often with the help of the building materials used at the time, as well as skilled craftsmen.

True to its Mid-century ideals, the house has maintained its simple geometric volume, constructed in steel. The facade consists of alternating surfaces of dense brickwork and large swathes of glass. Daily life is all about the interior and its view of the surrounding nature. The floor plan features a large open space with a service block in the centre; this separates the living and dining area from the kitchen and the breakfast nook.

The simplicity of the interior ensures that the focus is on the collection of furniture – and what a collection it is. Original pieces by legends Paul McCobb, Milo Baughman, Eero Saarinen, Harry Bertoia, and Charles and Ray Eames occupy the various spaces. “It’s not a showroom, but rather an environment in which our love for Mid-century Modern furniture can be expressed,” say the owners. “And where could we showcase this more successfully than in a special 1950s architectural gem by Arthur Witthoefft?”

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Here’s a sneak peek at Arbour Nature Estate a new development in George penned by Robert Silke & Partners. If you’re familiar with Robert’s retro-modern work, you’ll know it’s something special…

If you’re a fan of VISI, you’ll know we’re a fan of the buildings designed by Robert Sike & Partners. The apartments, hotels and homes he has conceived illustrate a signature style that looks back to anything from Deco, to Bauhaus, Tropical Modernism and PoMo, translating those aesthetics into a contemporary style that sees his thoroughly modern creations sit very comfortable in among Cape Town’s heritage architecture.

He’s got a couple of new projects on the go – and you’ve had a glimpse of the PoMo inspired Spindle – and here’s the latest… Arbour Nature Estate in George. To be completed by 2026 it’s a development that Robert describes as “Jungle Modernism”. On its riverside site, Arbour Nature Estate will offer everything from homes and apartments, to community amenities like a resort-style lifestyle centre with a double-storey clubhouse, heated outdoor swimming pool, padel court and an open-air cinema.

This is not the first housing estate you have designed, right? 

Long ago we designed Silwerkloof, a neo-Cape Dutch PoMo estate (72 houses) in Plattekloof in the 2000’s, so it’s been nearly twenty years.

So what was the brief for Arbour Nature Estate?

David Cohen (the MD of Signatura) had been talking to us for some years about his dream of developing a completely-immersive modernist environment; a “new town” where we could design all the aesthetic details, and where every way you look would be sculptural “white plastic” modernism. So when Signatura came accross 11ha of prime riverfront land in the centre of George, David called me (it might have been New Year’s Day 2022) to say it’s time for us to build that “new town” we’d been talking about.

And what inspired the design … and how would you describe its aesthetic?

The environment is the starting point of course. Half of the site is a sensitive riverine forest, and the other half is lawn. So the first decision was not to touch the forest or the river, which means that the estate has its own private nature reserve. The Garden Route’s coastal temperate climate is “sub-sub-tropical”, which means that George can have trees and plants that we can only dream of in Cape Town … and thus we conceived of Jungle Modernism, where curvaceous smooth white walls juxtapose against Strelitzias, palms, Cape Chestnut trees and the occasional Loerie.

Who is this estate aimed at and how does the design meet the needs of the community it’s aimed at?

Signatura’s starting point was to develop a new Garden Route suburb with a broad range of accommodation – something for everyone. Having said that, people don’t come to George to live in a micro-flat, but rather they come here for a better lifestyle. Thus the smallest living units range from 60m² 2-bedroom apartments ; to 140m² 3-bedroom duplexes; to 170m² 3-bedroom simplexes ; to 220m² 4-bedroom villas. But the estate also needs a heart and soul and a communal focus. To this end there’s a multi-storey clubhouse and sports centre, with entertainment deck, padel tennis court, large pool, fire pits and braai terraces – with a massive sculptural projection wall for night-time drive-in-style movies and major televised sports events. There’s even separate dog parks for small and large dogs. A Garden Route utopia celebrating the best of the South African way of life.

In designing a housing estate, what are the specific architectural challenges you need to solves during the design and construction of the housing estate… and how did you overcome them while preserving the architectural style?

Architects (whose buildings are often object-orientated) sometimes struggle with urban design, because good urban design is rather about developing a keen interest in the spaces between those buildings. The key to a successful and beautiful urban environment is to design the homes in such a way as to create desirable, sheltered and defensible spaces between the houses. We designed a system of closes and cul-de-sacs, whereby smaller neighbourhoods of houses are clustered around quiet, landscaped dead-end lanes – the kind of environment where you might still find kids playing cricket in the street.

What choice of materials and construction techniques will be used in the project, particularly with regard to creating the architectural style you’ve designed?

Our “house style” is very much centred around the traditional Western Cape vernacular of white-plastered masonry walls with parapets around their roofs. Just because we’re building in the Garden Route doesn’t mean we have to chop down forests in order to clad buildings in timber – which is environmentally pretentious and detrimental. Rather we use ubiquitously-available sand and clay and “white-wash” to make our architecture – somewhat like the Cape Dutch – and we take pure joy from extracting the maximum quantum of sculpture from tried-and-tested Cape construction techniques that intersect happily with the principles of pure international modernism.

Are there any sustainable design principles and innovative technologies that will be used to enhance its functionality and reduce its environmental impact?

The apartment buildings have very large north-facing roofs that will be fully-exploited for solar power collection for the use of the development, whilst there will be not one conventional electric geyser in any of the estate’s 179 dwelling units. The entire electrical system is designed to be impervious to load shedding. Half of the site comprises a riverine forest, which remains entirely undisturbed.

Other than that the estate is embarking on a rehabilitation process to replace exotic trees and shrubs with indigenous. 5ha of flat Kikuyu (a proverbial dessert of lawn) is being replaced with 179 comfortable new households and associated landscaping – which is in itself a gift to the environment.

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The post George Meets Jungle Modernism appeared first on Visi.

COMPILED BY Michaela Stehr

While some of these shops operate solely through Instagram, a few have stand-alone websites for your perusal – and the majority deliver throughout South Africa.

1. Needful Things Online

Instagram: @needful_things_online

Website: needful-things.co.za

Need to know: Ships countrywide

2. Anouk Furniture

Instagram: @anoukfurniture

Website: anoukfurniture.co.za

Need to know: Contact 079 489 4206 for prices and availability.

3. Ride a White Swan

Instagram: @ride_a_white_swan

Need to know: DM for details on specific products.

4. Vamp Furniture

Instagram: @vamp_furniture

Need to know: Email paula@vampfurniture.co.za for availability and shipping options.

5. Maison

Instagram: @maison_capetown

Website: maisoncapetown.com

Need to know: Consigns vintage furniture. Pick up available in Cape Town only.

6. Huisraad

Instagram: @huisraad_modern

Website: huisraad.co.za

Need to know: Ships countrywide.

7. Retro Lane

Instagram: @retrolaneonline

Website: retrolane.co.za

Need to know: Email sales@retrolane.co.za for more information.

8. The Retro Chair Man

Instagram: @retro_chairman

Need to know: DM for purchases.

9. (Re)Store

Instagram: @restore_vintage

Need to know: DM for purchases. Shipping to Johannesburg.

10. Vintage Club

Instagram: @vintageclubfurniture

Website: vintageclub.co.za

Need to know: Ships to Cape Town area. Shipping can be recommended or arranged for areas outside of Cape Town.

11. Ching Ching

Instagram: @chingchingct

Need to know: Ships nationwide.

12. Re-Trend Shop

Instagram: @retrendsa

Website: retrend.co.za

Need to know: Ships nationwide.

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The post Local Vintage Shops Online appeared first on Visi.

Egghead Diner, a trendy retro Cape Town diner-inspired eatery straight out of the 70s made the shortlist for ‘Small Spaces’ at the Restaurant & Bar Design Awards 2022.

Designed by KT Interiors, Egghead celebrates the wooden clad walls, opaque glass decal and buttery yellow hues of a bygone era, neatly packed into a quaint spot offering delectable food and drink in a nostalgic setting. The colour scheme is inspired by the hero of the restaurant – the humble yet versatile egg. The interiors juxtapose shades of golden yellow (yolk), perfect white (egg white), cream (buttery scrambled egg), black (frying pan), and pops of green (the garnish on a good eggroll). The team used these colours to bring the energy of warmth, happiness, and a homely feel to the space.

The uber-cool take on a neighbourhood style, retro, classic diner highlights the use of rounded edges, yellow diner booths, black and white tiled floors and finishing touches such as parented wallpaper and beaded curtains. Bauhaus art covers the walls, neon lights bathe the space in a golden glow while eclectic ornaments keep visitors’ eyes wandering.

Pick a seat at the high-top counter overlooking the kitchen, in the cosy banquets, or at our curbside tables that offer a feeling of the hustle and bustle of Kloof Street and a view of table mountain.

Looking for more design inspiration? Sign up to our weekly newsletter, here.

The post Cool Spaces: Egghead Diner appeared first on Visi.

Handcrafted and locally designed, these new Fieldbar cooler boxes will keep all your favourite tipples icy-cold this summer. Have you ever clapped eyes on a more stylish drinks cooler? We’ll wait…

Every now and then the VISI team spots an item that instantly leaps onto all of our must-have lists – and these stylish new Fieldbar drinks coolers have done just that. The Fieldbar Drinks Box is a hardcase cooler that carries up to three bottles of wine (or two bottles of champagne), and is light, durable, clean-lined and available in six up-to-the-minute colours: Parisian Green, Seaboat Blue, Orchard Orange, Bazaruto Blue, Oyster Grey and Safari White.

Fieldbar was started by Capetonians Lee Hartman and Corban Warrington, who say they “noticed that people don’t love their coolers. There are so many beautifully made products for our homes, but outdoor products are a bit bland when it comes to style and design.” After two years of product development – including asking more than 800 people just what they were looking for in a modern cooler – the result is the Drinks Box (R1 499), which is the company’s first product.

Hard-shelled “for better thermal performance”, the Fieldbar cooler is easy to pack and comfortable to carry. And the Fieldbar range doesn’t stop there: a larger cooler, the Picnic Box, is set to launch early next year – at which point the brand will also expand its colour range.

To be among the first to hear about exciting launch specials, sign up for Fieldbar newsletters on their website.

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A quaint semi-detached Victorian gem in the heart of Observatory, Cape Town has been revamped into a welcoming, colourful space.

As antique and vintage design collectors, the owners of the Lizmi Cottage jumped at the task of transforming it into a Mid-century treasure trove. “This charming Victorian cottage had been frozen in time and we couldn’t wait to bring a new lease of life to the house again.”

High ceilings and wooden floors feature throughout the three-bedroom space. Originally, the home featured wall-to-wall mustard carpeting, which was swiftly removed, revealing the original Oregon pine floors. A bright yellow kitchen features as the hub of the house, with Formica tables and quirky open-display cabinetry. “When we lifted the linoleum to restore the wooden floors beneath, we discovered, amongst other items, a Sunday Times newspaper from 13 November 1977!”

The two bathrooms received Art Deco tiling in shades of mint green and cream, with fittings, doorknobs and handles sourced from local flea markets and vintage shops. The main bathroom features a classic free-standing claw bath.

The six-sleeper space is available for rental, offering Smeg and Grundig appliances, off-street parking and a private deck for relaxing lazy lunches. The cottage is also available to rent for photo shoots and film shoots.

For more information, visit lizmicottage.co.za.

Looking for more architectural inspiration? Sign up to our weekly newsletter, here, or take a look at this cottage renovation in Sea Point.

The post Renovated Observatory Cottage appeared first on Visi.

RIPPLE EFFECT

Wave is a contemporary outdoor chaise longue sunbed designed by Francesco Rota for Paola Lenti. Hand-woven with rope cord, its adjustable backrest can be set to two positions. Available locally from Il Lusso.

PORSCHE PROFILE

“The 356 is a collection of outdoor furniture inspired by the sinuous and elegant curves of the first Porsche 356 made in the 1940s and 1950s, which bestow ergonomics and comfort on the product,” says José Antonio Gandía-Blasco Canales, who designed the 356 chaise longue with Pablo Gironés. It’s made from 100% recyclable rotation-moulded polyethylene. Available locally from Limeline.

BEANBAG REDUX

As a tribute to the bean bag of the 1970s, designer Héctor Serrano came up with his own version using just two pieces of fabric and a triangular pattern. The polystyrene bead filling moves and moulds for optimum comfort. Available locally from Limeline.

CUSTOMISABLE COMPOSITIONS

The Clip collection offers modular versatility with just two pieces: the ergonomic chair and the side table that doubles as a footrest to turn the chair into a lounger. Available in an array of bright shades, it’s moulded from 100% recyclable polyethylene. Available locally from Limeline.

POSTCARD APPEAL

The traditional striped deck chair with footstool remains a seaside classic. Polo South Africa has launched a new outdoor furniture range, with more homeware items joining the collection soon.

The post 5 Summer Loungers appeared first on Visi.

A striking collaboration between Smeg and award-winning South African photographer and film producer Filipa Domingues has resulted in a range of limited-edition fridges depicting imagery of four indigenous plants.

Leading up to her first solo exhibition, Filipa Domingues has transformed four Smeg fridges into functional works of art, entitled Kigelia Africana, Aloe HB Barbed Wire, Impala Lily and Proteas. The CheckMyPlants Smeg retro FAB28 fridges feature the four plants against a black background.

“Smeg has always had deep passion and appreciation for the arts and the opportunity to play a part in the creative expression of such a talented South African photographer is an absolute honour,” explains Steve Brookes, Managing Director of Smeg South Africa. “It goes without saying that Filipa’s enthusiasm in capturing all things rare and unusual in an effort to drive a greater appreciation for our environment is commendable.”

The CheckMyPlants Smeg retro fridges are currently available exclusively to the supporters of Filipa’s Indiegogo fundraising campaign, where all proceeds will go towards the funding of her CheckMyPlants solo exhibition.

For more information, visit indigogo.com or follow Filipa on Instagram at @checkmyplants.

The post Smeg X Filipa Domingues: CheckMyPlants Retro Fridges appeared first on Visi.

Shop for vinyl record players and retro-inspired Bluetooth speakers to join the new-age old-school music revolution.

Record sales are booming. And while streaming may be convenient, some sounds are just meant to be heard on vinyl. On the other hand, with Spotify, Google Play Music and iTunes so readily available, having the best speakers is also important.

Here are 10 options to choose from.

1. Newport Bluetooth Speaker in Sonic Blue R2 799, Superbalist

2. Thorens TD-209 Turntable R18 690, Homemation

3. Pro-ject Debut Carbon Turntable R9 990, Takealot

4. Stanmore Bluetooth R4 799, Superbalist

5. Denon DJ VL12 Prime Turntable R13 790, Viva Afrika

6. Amazon Deco Bluetooth Speaker R650, Takealot

7. Thorens TD-206 Turntable R18 690, Homemation

8. Volkano Fabric Series Bluetooth Speaker R275, Takealot

9. Reloop RP-7000 MK2 Professional DJ Turntable R9 500, Tradelius

10. Harmony Bluetooth Speaker II R1 679, Superbalist

The post 10 Retro Turntables and Speakers appeared first on Visi.

Using modern technology to be powerful, efficient, safe and cutting edge, the Rayvolt Cruzer E-bike, now available in South Africa, is inspired by the retro designs of a bygone era. 

The bike, which references Grand Prix road racing motorcycles, is available in two versions: the standard 400-watt model and the Power Hub 1000-watt model. Both come with a standard 48-volt lithium-ion battery with an optional double-sized battery to keep the bike going for longer.

The Cruzer also features built-in virtual technology called EIVA, which links to the rider’s smartphone and monitors the bike’s electric drive, alerting riders of any issues or mechanical maintenance needs, offering a built-in GPS system. With pedal assist, the bike can easily reach up to 24 kph.

For more information, visit rayvoltbike.co.za.

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