Anne-apolis

Recently, we completed Phase 1 of a new postgraduate hub at Wits University , and in the process, we inadvertently "framed" a curious detail at the back of the very first building on campus, built in 1922. From a distance, one may have a sense that the tops of the pilasters are decorated, consistent with the Neoclassical detailing of the rest of the building, but one might assume that it is simply a slight variation of the front portico. Wits Robert Sobukwe building south side While the other sides of this building have very standard Neoclassical details - Corinthian columns to the iconic front facade, flanked by Renaissance inspired window and door surrounds, the architects were more adventurous at the back. Detail of the capital From the second floor of the much more recent Solomon House, we can more clearly see that the capitals to the pilasters are stylised proteas, a nod to the South African location. This "back" facade would have been very visible to pedestri...

  In past eras, ceilings were often more elaborate than any of the other surfaces of a room, whether embellished with decorative plasterwork or fine paintings.  Sometimes, the structure of the building would be expressed in the ceiling, such as a gothic cathedral, where the complex curved structure was visible from below, accentuated by the ribbing, which also played an important structural function, similar to the veins on leaves. This attention to the ceiling persisted well into the twentieth century, with pressed metal ceilings imitating the fine craftsmanship of the past. Pressed metal ceiling in a 1930s domestic quarters In the apartment block where I live, built in 1932, modernism was just taking a hold in the more progressive architectural practices. This building is in a very stripped Art Deco style, often called "streamline moderne", a much more flexible interpretation of the Modern Movement with its dedication to "form follows function" and a complete abse...

  Some time back, I did a blog on door handles , specifically looking at the problem of replacing them in a heritage building. Today I take a step back to look at the door itself. I am writing this blog from my office in a building completed in 1942, at the time the last word in modernism. Every aspect of the design has been carefully considered, with even the precast concrete panels on the exterior scaled to line up with the steel bars in the windows. While most of the renovations over the years have either been very sensitive to the original design, or fortuitously simple, in character with the building, the front doors were not so lucky - clearly somebody thought that an "old" building needed "old looking" doors! The more recent front door to a modernist building No doubt, the inspiration for this choice of a panelled door with decorative mouldings came from the building next door, which was built in 1922 and has panelled doors throughout - to the exterior doors ...

In many cultures all over the world and in different eras, architects have had an obsession with stairs, whether for ceremonial purposes, or for the visual and spatial excitement in a more utilitarian context. In another blog, I will be looking at specifically at ramps, an even older solution to navigating a change in level, although very much back in the designer's repertoire as we become more conscious of universal accessibility .  The massive pyramids of the Ancient Maya, the over-scaled steps up to the Parthenon in Athens, and the elaborate stairs on the ceremonial route within the Forbidden City in Beijing, give us an idea of the diversity of design approaches that have been used to express power and authority. But today, I want to look at some more modest uses of stairs, in a domestic setting. Until as late as the mid-twentieth century, the design of stairs was often dictated by class and expense - the main stairs for the household owner's family and guests was often a ve...