Heritage Re-Crafted – In New Dialogue with the Past

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Vedhant Maharaj, Founding Director at Rebel Base Collective, leads a transformative movement that seeks to bridge the gap between heritage and modernity. With a focus on dismantling the status quo, the collective embraces the complexities of colonial heritage in South Africa, creating spaces that not only honour the past but also boldly envision the future. On this enlightening journey of re-crafting heritage, Vedhant sat down to share how he approaches heritage, the analyses inherent to the process, and how the old informs the new when designing for the future.

Bridging old and new
As a collective aimed at dismantling and reorganising the status quo within design, we believe that the interplay between old and new plays a pivotal role in our work. Heritage and the idea of ‘the old’ hold many, often contradictory meanings for people. In South Africa, colonial forms of heritage find themselves at the forefront of many conversations. Some celebrate and protect these spaces, while others find their presence imposing and alienating. At Rebel Base, we aim to challenge the line that divides the question of ‘whose heritage?’ and introduce ideas that are less obvious, creating spaces that are new yet derive a unique character by responding cleverly to what was.

The deep dive
Our process involves deep analysis. We dissect as many challenges as possible regarding the existing buildings, spaces, frameworks, and the feelings surrounding our projects. This often leads us down a rabbit hole, sometimes delving into places even we do not fully understand. However, the collection and understanding of this information provide us with a wealth of material to work from. Truly listening and observing are critical design drivers in finding unique solutions, which we then fuse with the practical requirements of our briefs.

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Ode to oak and legacy
Our central approach was exemplified in our Ode to Oak project, where we aimed not only to satisfy practical needs but also to contribute to the layered conversation surrounding colonial heritage in Auckland Park, South Africa. Every element of the design responded to practical needs and desires rather than pursuing form for its own sake.

The undulating roof creates a light, voluminous space that remains intimate, hovering above the existing art-deco handrail, which needed to be retained. The rounded perforated ceiling surface optimises acoustic performance, reflecting sound in various directions to minimise direct reverberation.

Clerestory windows allow light into the space while framing views of the sky and the grand old oak tree, further celebrated through a semi-circular cutout in the eastern-most vault. The soft tapered profile of the vaults merges the roofline into the sky, guiding the eye to the northern forest.

The resulting structure is bold yet soft, nodding to the old art-deco extension of the restaurant’s interior and unfolding into the majestic oak tree and rolling lawns. The weighty, utilitarian base of the reflecting and trickling water feature allows the roof to fly, acknowledging the club’s legacy while launching it into the future.

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An exercise in blurring boundaries
Adaptive reuse is a powerful tool for creating sustainable and versatile buildings. We aim to blur the line between what is old and what is new; what the space can be used for now versus in the future. Our first step is to effectively use what we have. Whether salvaging and reusing materials or preserving spaces with unique features, we focus on sustainability.

BIKE HAUS represents a celebration of the raw building and how its purity serves as a backdrop for an exquisite tale of time. Home to a private collection of vintage motorcycles, the building draws inspiration from the shapes and elements found in motorcycles, subtly translated into the architecture.

Every element in the building is painstakingly handmade, challenging the norms of construction. The staircase hangs from the roof, casting dynamic shadows in the light-filled atrium. The brief required a design that could function as both a museum and a future home, prompting us to create a dual-purpose space that efficiently accommodates both needs, designing for the present and simultaneously planning for the future.

Often, we reinstate a detail that was removed from a building but that was part of the original design. This then gets a modern twist. Our corner windows in our MOD House project were removed at some point. We reintroduced these but made the corner completely openable to create an absence of space.

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Looking towards the future
Our approach is future-centric. I once found myself in hot water for stating that ‘heritage is not sacrosanct’ to a friend and fellow heritage-centric architect. For us, however, this statement rings true. Often, one can be so engulfed by the old that they try to replicate it or protect parts of it that hold little value simply because of their perceived heritage. We prefer to open a conversation with heritage — to challenge it, respect it, and find depth in how we create space for new heritages, allowing people who lack personal ties to past histories to find a place in our narrative.

Our addition to the St Mary’s campus envisages the future of education, revamping a familiar space and feel. By deviating from traditional forms and formats of schools, we’ve expanded the notion of educational spaces. The development was planned along the two main campus axial lines, making it a nexus and entrance point. This design splits the building into four parts, allowing for movement rather than merely arrival, fostering intimate inbetween spaces for students to inhabit during their breaks.

Heritage on the edge
At Rebel Base Collective, we envision a future where heritage is not merely preserved but re-crafted — where the old informs the new, and where every space tells a story that resonates with the complexities of our shared past. As we continue to challenge the status quo, we remain steadfast in our belief that architecture can forge meaningful connections to heritage, and as intentional understanding of the future, allowing all individuals to find their place within the narrative of our built environment.

This Article is an extract from our October issue. Read the full issue here.

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