Set on the escarpment of a 300-metre cliff, this holiday home exudes energy. “I would love to believe that all of the drama, the grace of the building is our work, but the setting plays such an important role,” says architect Christiaan van Aswegen. The house is low-slung and hugs the ground, with spectacular clifftop views.
As you cross the raised meadow of waving grasses from your point of arrival, the house forms a screen of sorts. It’s all part of what van Aswegen, calls “an unfolding sequence of spaces” or “architectural tantra”; a carefully choreographed progression as you arrive. From the meadow, you pass a pool and descend a few stairs onto a deck. “Then the surroundings really disappear because you are surrounded by the white walls of the house,” says van Aswegen. “The idea was that there would be a compression of space. Only once you enter the house do you get a glimpse of the view beyond, and then as you work your way towards the deck in front, it just expands and blows your mind.”
The house itself explores similar ideas to the Chandigarh furniture in its insistence on beauty and modernism combined with self-sufficiency and an appropriateness to its setting. “It was an opportunity to prove something that I feel very strongly about,” says van Aswegen, “that sustainability and green architecture can never be an excuse for not producing a beautiful building.” The house runs off solar power and stores and recycles its own water. It is entirely secluded and rural, but utterly modern.
View this beautiful architectural work in the gallery below.
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- In the hallway leading to the main living room, artwork by Trevor Coleman complements the sleek surrounds and industrial features.
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- The monastic simplicity of the kitchen island is typical of the ego-less design of the house, and of the way it captures natural light. “On the one hand it creates a simple and elegant backdrop for Mr Treger’s collection,” says van Aswegen. “On the other hand, it allows the architecture to disappear in the sense that the setting becomes what really matters.” The artworks in the background are by Cecil Skotnes.
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- The main sitting area reveals the calm quality of the interiors of the house. The armchairs are by Swiss-French designer Pierre Jeanneret; the chairs on either side of the fireplace are by Jeffrey Bernett for B&B Italia; the side tables are by Brazilian designer Percival Lafer; and the coffee table is by Willy Rizzo, an Italian designer and photographer. The lamps are by Harry Balmer for Laurel.
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- In the dining area, the Tom Dixon Pylon Table is surrounded by diamond chairs by Harry Bertoia. Both designs use welded steel in interesting and influential ways. The chandelier is by Gaetano Sciolari. On the table, the Spin Candelabra is also by Tom Dixon. On the sideboard is a sculpture by Edoardo Villa.
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- Altavista sideboard riffs with the Paul Evans designs elsewhere in the house. Above it hangs a painting by Erik Laubscher. On top of the cabinet, the sculptural and geometric forms of traditional African headrests play off the geometry of the cabinet doors.
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- On the deck outside, the refined form of the barbecue is balanced in an equal but opposite composition by a firepit. The architecture creates a “bleeding”, as van Aswegen puts it, between interior and outdoor spaces.
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- The “bleeding” continues in various spaces such as the covered area for the day bed. Architectural devices both conceal and reveal breathtaking views, while simultaneously creating complete privacy.
Photography by Greg Cox.
