Karla Cronjé
PROFESSIONAL ARCHITECTBSc (Arch), BArch (Hons), MArch (Prof)(CUMLAUDE)(UP), PrArch
Big city lights and urban noise have their appeal, yes. But Karla is interested, intrigued and always drawn to the quiet, unassuming and honest Karoo towns and spaces. A building is never just that to her. It is a story, a time capsule, a series of decisions taken. Why these materials? Where do the materials come from? Why that design? What do the details or lack of them reveal about the buildings’ heritage? Karla doesn’t just drive through towns, she absorbs their architecture and embraces the narrative revealed in the vernacular. When listening to what it is that keeps her inspired, her answer is refreshingly simple: Each building has a story. And like us, each one has been shaped by its environment, its past and future. Stories and stoeps define her design process and style. Every project has a thread, a story which shapes everything else. And in true South African style, Karla sits on the metaphorical stoep of her projects, taking the time to understand what the client and building needs from her. Karla always has room for just one more story (her large family has taught her to make space for anything) and for that we are thankful. Because it takes someone special to honour a space, a place and people through creating and loving architecture for exactly that reason.
