This pilot project is part of a programme run by the Thusong Civic Centre, which offers support and information to communities throughout the country. It was also the right occasion for Makeka Designs Laboratory to debunk a common cliché: that the poorer rundown suburbs get little investment and bad quality. Makeka, whose mission is to help redesign the post-apartheid landscape, was born in South Africa but grew up between New York and the South African enclave of Lesotho, where his father was a United Nations ambassador. Since there are no maps of the area, he observed the shape of the desolate and fragmented urban fabric from an aeroplane, proposing to use some of the existing models in the design of the building. The result is simple and sustainable architecture that aims to give a sense of permanence in a region where everything appears transitory and fragile. It seeks to respond to environmental and behavioural stimuli, while meeting residents’ social and educational needs with sports grounds, offices, exhibition spaces and an urban public park. Elena Sommariva
