Artist Sally Arnold’s house in South Africa’s Great Karoo is a pioneering instance of how local vernacular influences and materials can be harnessed to create something new and modern.
A protected central courtyard tucked into the L-shaped arrangement of the main building has a bright blue swimming pool running its length. The blue of the swimming pool reflects the intense blue of the sky, as well as catching the colour of the shutters and doors.
The rounded niche at the end of the swimming pool not only creates a comfortable poolside love seat, but also forms part of a series of curved and rounded shapes that run throughout the otherwise straight-lined architecture. Like the rooftop terrace, they are partly inspired by Moroccan architecture, but also reference some of the historic corbelled Karoo houses dating back to the 1800s.
From the front door, you can see how the level changes in the main living space of the house follow the slope of the ground outside to include three separate levels for kitchen, dining and living space. The interiors spaces telescope towards the high back windows, which are raised in response to the scale of the view of the Swartberg mountains and the vast sky beyond. Sally has kept the interior white for its calming, visually cleansing effect. Simple, local finishes have been selected throughout, including screed floors and the exposed pole beams and reed, or ‘latte’, ceiling.
The white and natural cement palette of the kitchen, with its screed tops, is both simple and sleek, and almost disappears into the background in the open-plan living space.
The main living room is positioned right at the back of the house in the largest volume, raised to maximise mountain and sky views. It is not quite double volume – about eight metres high, says Sally. She envisioned the sitting area as a cosy cluster of chairs and sofas – a little pocket of comfort within the internal volume – which allows it a sense of space while not being dwarfed or attempting to fill it. Sally’s favourite colour, green, is one of the only colours she’s expressed in the living room. She calls her furniture “a mishmash of everything” but admits she “particularly loves the ’50s”. Her sofa was one she had in her studio in Luxembourg, bought from a secondhand store there. “I really do love the mix of modern with vintage,” she says. “I think it’s really stimulating.”
“I really do love the mix of modern with vintage. I think it’s really stimulating.”
The circular bath (pictured right), which protrudes into the courtyard, has a skylight. “You can lie in the bathtub and see the stars at night,” she says. “And the afternoon light there is spectacular in summer, just beautiful.” Its circular shape was inspired by Moroccan architecture. “I just thought it was so nurturing,” says Sally.
The bedroom, in the single-storey wing of the house, plays around with the possibilities of combining traditional and contemporary design. There’s an unpretentious local texture about it, and an easy-going sense of comfort.
The roof terrace, which was originally inspired by Moroccan architecture, makes a perfect outdoor living space in the hot, dry and sometimes windy climate. Sally notes that it’s a feature that has been imitated throughout the small town, testimony to its success.
Words — Graham Wood
Photographs — Greg Cox
