Cape Town Accommodation: Contemporary Architecture at its best
Cape Town accommodation range from snug B&B’s tucked away in shady
suburbs to glittering high rise hotels boasting the finest views available on
any continent. Tourists from all over the world often stand amazed at the sheer
style of the variety of architectural styles that make up this eclectic city.
A vivid aspiring town, Cape Town‘s architecture is a fascinating mosaic of
Asian, European and African traditions mixed with increasingly modern elements.
Foreign investors, attracted by the temperate climate and spectacular views,
have commissioned magnificent homes on luxury properties on Cape Town’s
Atlantic seaboard; while the historical inner-city buildings receive frequent
attention and restoration to ensure they remain as beautiful as ever.
The Mother City’s distinct architectural flavour began developing in the latter
part of the 18th century to mid 19th century, with the talents of the German
sculptor Anton Anreith and Parisian architect Louis Thibault playing a big
role. They joined forces several times and Anreith's German Baroque style
somehow managed to merge with and compliment Thibault's neo-classic designs as
favoured by French King Louis XVI. The resultant Cape-Dutch style remains a
classic feature of Cape Town architecture to this very day.
On an international level, Cape Town’s architects and designers were as
influenced by the Modernist school of thought of the early 20th century as
their European counterparts were. Le Corbusier was, and is, without a doubt,
the most influential and admired architect of the Modernist era. Both his
writing and visions of homes and urban areas were as innovative as they were
influential and his ideas on urban design eventually became the blueprint for
post-war rebuilding.
Le Corbusier, like Mies van Der Rohe and other architects of their generation,
had very little in the way of formal architectural schooling. He did, however,
have a strong belief that the 20th century should be regarded as an age of
advancement: an era in which engineering and technological advances could
introduce new ways of living to a down-trodden society. It was only
architecture that was lagging behind, as new buildings continued to ape various
styles of the past.
By 1918, Le Corbusier had developed the theory of Purism in collaboration with
artist Amédée Ozenfant, stipulating his ideas on how architecture should meet
the demands of the Machine Age. Purist ‘rules’ required architects to simplify
their design elements and to dispense with any unnecessary ornamentation.
Architecture was to become as efficient as a factory assembly line. Despite his
love of the machine aesthetic, Le Corbusier was determined that his
architecture would reintroduce nature into people’s living space. Cities dating
from the Victorian era were chaotic and dark and he was sure that a rationally
planned city using standardised housing types would offer a humane alternative.
After the Second World War Europe’s housing problems were getting worse by the day
and Le Corbusier got his opportunity to put his urban theories into practise.
Cue: The Unité d'Habitation. Constructed in Marseilles in 1952, this mammoth
building was the synthesis of 30 years of Corbusian domestic and urban
thinking. The structure was 17 storeys high, designed to accommodate 1,600
inhabitants and incorporated various types of apartments, shops, clubs and
meeting rooms – all connected by raised walkways. Scoffed at by the European
public at the time of its construction, the Unite is now a coveted address for
Marseille's middle-class professionals.
A truly innovative school of thought, Modernism has, and continues to,
influence modern architecture to a great extent. So next time you look at
rentals in Clifton or consider other types of accommodation in Cape Town take a
moment to reflect on the long way we have come, architecturally speaking.
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