the reserve

Contemporary Living Beside the Water | Stanford, South Africa

Project Area: 1275m2
Location: Stanford, South Africa
Status: Design development

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This countryside residence explores a close relationship between architecture, water and the open landscape. A series of low, overlapping roof planes extends across the site, drawing together separate wings beneath deep overhangs. Raised roof volumes punctuate the horizontal composition, giving individual spaces their own scale and identity.

Concrete walls anchor the house, while slender glazing frames and dark metal roofs give its edges a finer expression. Perforated Corten steel screens filter sunlight and control solar exposure, adding a warm, weathered texture to the façade. Their patterned surfaces cast shifting shadows across the interiors and terraces.

Long glazed façades connect the rooms to timber decks and sheltered outdoor living spaces. Along the water’s edge, the pool runs parallel to the main living wing, while decks project towards the dam. A sunken fire court sits beside the covered terrace, set within planted banks of grasses, reeds and scattered trees.