Human Settlements Review - Parliamentary Monitoring Group

Human Settlements Review, Volume 1, Number 1, 2010
Comparisons, trade-offs and opportunities within the
context of sustainability, contemporary vernacular
architecture and innovation: A case study of Centani:
Greenshops Financial Services Centre; and East London:
University of Fort Hare, New Auditoria and Teaching
Complex.
Colleen Avice Steenkamp
School of Architecture, University of the Free State , Research Cluster on
Sustainable Development and Poverty Reduction, University of the Free State
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1. INTRODUCTION:
Why is sustainability becoming more
imperative What are the common functional,
ecological, ethical, social and design principles
currently being used in South Africa How could
sustainability be incorporated into modern
architectural and vernacular design within a
regional context Despite the popularity of
using the terms “sustainability, innovation
and vernacular architecture”, these remain
ambiguous terms within the architectural
profession.
Rather than construct synthetic, and generally
insupportable, distinctions in some hypothetical
sequence, one should rather choose to
examine the sustainability, innovation and
vernacular architecture within a specific
region, chosen here is the eastern seaboard
of the Eastern Cape. In so doing, identifying its
source: people, traditions, cultures, materials
and skills.
This paper will focus on three contemporary
theoretical and practical terms within
the architectural profession, these being
sustainability; the introduction of innovative
methods and materials; and vernacular
architectural design within the South African
Eastern Cape Province. Qualitative data
will be employed by means of case studies
whereby a comparative theoretical analysis
may be performed between the Centani:
Greenshops Financial Services Centre and
the New Auditoria and Teaching Complex at
the University of Fort Hare in East London.
The aim is to critically analyse these case
studies within the sustainable, vernacular
and innovative contexts, thereby bridging the
gap between the architectural academia and
practice.
This paper aims to demonstrate the integrated
bonds between the populate and community
life, and their cultural and environmental
content within both case studies. Within
South Africa, there lies a traditional tapestry,
a treasure of skills, craftsmanship and
competence. The sensibility and the knowhow
to construct buildings within the Eastern
Cape effectively with regard to the land, the
climate and the resources at hand, all embody
the values and needs that are specific to
the region. In the case studies discussed,
the buildings constructed – or that which