250 Buitengracht Street

At this somewhat uncomfortable knuckle between the Bo-Kaap and Tamboerskloof, this development which is much more than an alteration or an addition, appropriately respects that which is worthy and integrates a new urban compact accommodation.
The original stone and cast iron boundary wall gives over to the new brick wall which also partly forms the gables of the two new shed-like structures which mimic the reworked gable of the original Victorian and gently march up the slope of street boundary. Every inch of this wall is carefully proportioned to eventually reach the full height of the studios at the north- western corner, next to the site of a three-storey block of flats. The actual gables are formed with corrugated iron sheeting, cascading down the boundary wall.
The addition of the two new shed structures created two courtyards, one a generous entry courtyard which gives access to all four new living units, as well as to the shared studio space. Upon entry one is struck by the generosity of this space, its comfortable proportions and the opportunities for interaction. The second courtyard is split in two and acts as a horizontal and vertical connection between living and working and also between public and private.
The same generosity and humane attention to scale and materiality is carried through to every space, internal or external, to every detail and to every choice of material.
This project is exemplary for its celebration of history of occupation and for its sharing of space between working and living, but beyond that its generosity of accommodating extended living on a really constricted urban site.