I dig out my plush floral velvet tablecloth and cover my very sleek Gregor
Jenkin metal table with it. Sorry, Gregor, but it is the only way I can make it
through winter. The full-blown roses and peonies, stripy tulips and droopy blue-
bells lift my spirit, and the texture of velvet warms my heart.
Another thing that warms my heart is a winter road trip, but only if you can
break the journey between Johannesburg and Cape Town with an overnight stay
in Richmond at the Richmond Café and Rooms. I love the fact that the public(^) areas are all dark, moody and filled with wonderfully eclectic stuff, and the rooms
are spare and decked in shades of white. What’s more, the milk tart is supposed
to be the best in the country. What’s not to like?
Beautifully curated collections are a common thread in our issue this month.
Seasoned collector Fergus Armstrong shows us how to live large in a loft in the
Joburg CBD, surrounded by things he loves. Says Fergus, “If you buy something
you truly love, it’ll always hold value to you.”
In a similar vein, architect Jürgen Kieslich and interior designer Etienne
Hanekom transformed a stark industrial space in Green Point into a comfort-
able home that harbours some impressive collections. Etienne lightened up the
space by introducing whimsical wallpapers with nautical and forest themes, and
an inky blue ceiling flecked with gold that resembles a starry sky at night. Etienne
sums it up perfectly: “It’s a serious house that doesn’t take itself too seriously.”
And if all these collections of objects are just not for you, there is a minimal
holiday home in the Hemel-en-Aarde valley, designed by Knysna-based architect
Guillaume Pienaar. It is stripped of everything that might be considered super-
fluous. This brick building is easy to maintain and live in, and a good example
of modernist master Le Corbusier’s mantra, “A house is a machine for living in.”
I hope this winter issue pleases and inspires you, and before you know it the
impossibly green new leaves of the oaks will be out.
SUMIEN
EVERY YEAR,
ROUND ABOUT
MID MAY,
IN VISI 100, the
wrong caption
appeared on
page 240, our
story about a new
perfume by Wild
Olive Artisans. It
should have read:
Artist Penelope
Cooras created
the artwork used
on the packaging
and bottle design
of Terra Flora
Parfum; and
opposite, muse
Kelly Ghali and
perfumer Marioara
de la Tara.
The owners of this Hemel-en-Aarde house wanted “something
light and simple inside”, says architect Guillaume Pienaar.
Interior designer Fergus Armstrong’s assemblage of possessions
brings a timeless quality to his loft in New Braamfontein.
visi.co.za JUNE/JULY 2019 18
�ISI EDITOR’S LETTER