techniques to a house for humans, thought
Hefer? ‘It was an organic process. We built
everything on site using local artisans and
materials in the traditional style of the area.
Building of the grid was both a diiculty and
a blessing,’ explains the designer, who spent
three years inding a local builder up to the
task. ‘It meant we could do what we wanted
but logistically it was insane.’ Audience
participation was also a hindrance: baboons
dismantled the outdoor shower and a leopard
cub shacked up under the foundations.
Hefer and his wife, designer and curator
Yelda Bayraktar, began work on the interiors,
later handing over to Cape Town specialist
Maybe Corpaci. They opted for ‘built-in
furniture, much like that of a nest, accented
by a few great pieces with a modernist touch’.
While Hefer drew every last detail,
Bachran was on a quest of his own. In 2010 he
had bought the original plot of land, a former
farm, as a weekend escape from Windhoek
and Cape Town, where he runs property
businesses. He soon acquired more land and,‘fuelled by a passion for nature’, he set about
‘rehabilitating the results of a hundred years’
worth of bad farming practice’. The area was
once populated by abundant wildlife, thanks
to its almost year-round natural pools and
waterfalls. Bachran installed new roads,
removed miles of fencing and is gradually
reintroducing antelopes, zebras, girafes,
big cats and rodents. There are plans to
reintroduce the endangered black rhino too.
Bachran will continue to grow the reserve.
Hefer, meanwhile, is working on more
vernacular houses elsewhere. Next up is a
coconut palm-thatched treehouse for a new
resort in the Maldives, and some ‘Tadao
Ando-esque designs’ in Rwanda, where he is
working with local architects who build with
sticks and mud using ancient techniques.
While the Namibian hideaway was taking
shape, so too was Hefer’s reputation: his nests
and, more recently, his oversized seating pods
depicting endangered species, handmade
from eco-friendly materials, have propelled
him onto the world stage as an ethical
designer with a mission. ‘For years, I pitched
my nests to safari camps and lodges. People
didn’t get it, but I kept on trucking. Finally,
I met someone mad enough to say yes,’ he
says. ‘Swen and I are a pair of obsessives who
never take no for an answer.’ ∂
The Nest is available to rent, email
[email protected]; animal-farm.co.zaLEFT, THE NEST’S THATCHED
ROOF IS SUPPORTED BY A
STEEL FRAME AND STONE
WALLS; THE STRUCTURE TOOK
FIVE YEARS TO COMPLETE
BELOW, LOCAL KIAAT
HARDWOOD PANELLING IS
SOFTENED WITH SKINS AND
SHAG PILES IN A BEDROOM136 ∑