Catalysing Change

Architect and visionary, Thomas Chapman talks about his ever-adapting design philosophy and grass-roots, localised solutions for the future of utilities and housing in South Africa

Born in Johannesburg, Thomas Chapman “fell into” architecture at a young age, achieving his master’s degree in architecture in 2008 and urban design in 2013 from University of Witwatersrand. During his studies, Thomas gained experience while working with well-known architecture duo, Silvio Rech and Lesley Carstens, but realised that he was more interested inclusivity rather than exclusivity; residential and social projects rather than commercial hotel design. While working as a researcher in the fields of oral history and civic engagements in Johannesburg, Thomas “conceptualised a multi-disciplinary practice which could perform a kind of translating role between communities and architects”. Founding Local Studio 2012, “we eventually evolved from a group of activists into a fairly normal architecture firm but one with firm values and experience in community work,” says Thomas.

Local Studio works mainly in affordable housing, social infrastructure and public space sectors and is responsible for several projects that have played a part in the regeneration of downtown Johannesburg. Beyond simply affordability, Local Studio is concerned with the ability of housing to support upward social mobility through dynamic ownership models and unorthodox spatial typologies which promote sharing. When speaking about his design philosophy, Thomas explains that he prefers to rethink his beliefs every three years or so and admits that the projects that the studio completed in its first five years compared to the ones they are working on today, are very different.

“For the last five years I have had the view that the most interesting projects are the result of interesting locations and programs, both which are not the choice of the architect, but that of the client. Most of the work we completed in the first five years of practice were largely the result of these two factors. Our typological and tectonic choices came out of a need to celebrate context and program in the most restrained way. This involved a series of projects which come across as almost temporary, in that they are made of prefabricated light steel elements and translucent walling systems. Lately I have begun to divert from this path and am becoming more interested in the capacity of architecture to honestly reflect the struggle we are experiencing as a nation and continent. This new philosophy is certainly impacting the decisions I make in design, and are visible mostly in material choices and a general sense of permanence rather than temporality,” says Thomas.

While South Africa shares many similarities in architecture and construction as the rest of the world, Thomas admits that low cost manual labor and lax safety and sustainability standards as a developing country means that they can build a lot faster and cheaper but this often compromises quality. In terms of the future of housing and architecture in South Africa, Thomas believes that his country is at a very interesting turning point.

“I think we can’t possibly afford to continue a pattern of expensive infrastructure development borrowed from developed countries while our cities continue to grow at exponential rates. I look forward to grass-roots, localised solutions to issues of mobility, water and power that are uniquely African by virtue of their ease of implementation in our unique context. Invariably architecture will grow from this new approach to infrastructure and we will see a greater emphasis on local materials and craft.”