Heterotrophic syntheses : mediation in the domestic architecture of Gabriël Fagan

Abstract

Gabriël (Gawie) Fagan (1925) is a leading South African architect. His architecture is regionally rooted and can be described as a "new" architectural language that mediates between a love of the Cape vernacular, functional requirements and responses to an education in Modernism. It is not architecture at rest. It does not rely on a homotopic formality, rigid reinterpretation or direct reliance on traditional or Modernist typologies. It is suffused with tensions and contradictions and a heterotrophic hybridity which makes the architecture a unique synthesis, a quality rarely encountered in South African architecture. Fagan's design process is rooted in the polarities of his upbringing and education. He was raised in a respected family where frugality and the appreciation of quality were equally important. As a child his pursuits varied from pragmatic curiosity to creative sensitivity. These contradictions continued during his tertiary education, completing four years of an engineering degree before studying architecture. The orthodox international Modernism of the Witwatersrand Architectural School was shifting to a regional expression at the newly formed Pretoria School and the influence of lecturers like the pragmatic Basil South (1915-1952) and Cole-Bowen (1904-1976) and contextually sensitive architects like Helmut Stauch (1910-1970) and Norman Eaton (1902-1966) paved the way for Fagan's own architectural language. In this paper Fagan's formal architectural mediations through the medium of his domestic oeuvre are investigated.

Gabriël (Gawie) Fagan (1925) is ’n vernaamde Suid Afrikaanse argitek. Sy argitektuur is gebiedsgebonde and kan beskryf word as ‘n ‘nuwe’ argitektoniese taal wat tussen ’n liefde van Kaapse inheemse argitektuur, funksionele vereistes en ‘n opvoeding in Modernisme bemiddel. Dit is nie ‘n argitektuur wat rus nie. Dit maak nie staat op ‘n homotopiese formaliteit, onbuigsame herinterpretasie of ‘n direkte vertroue op tradisionele of Modernistiese tipologieë. Dit is oordek met spanning en teenstrydighede en ‘n heterotropiese hibriditeit wat die argitektuur ‘n unieke sintese maak, ‘n kwalitieit wat seldsaam in Suid Afrikaanse argitektuur teegekom word. Fagan se ontwerpproses se oorsprong kan gevind word in die polaritei van sy opvoeding. Hy is in ‘n welgestelde familie gebore waar spaarsaamheid en ‘n waardering van kwaliteit gelyk getrek het. As ‘n kind het sy belange tussen pragmatiese nuuskierigheid en kreatiewe sensitiwiteit gewissel. Hierdie teenstrydighede het gedurende sy tersiere opvoeding aangehou waar hy vier jaar van ‘n ingeneurs graad klaargemaak het voor hy argitektuur begin studeer het. Die ortodokse internasionale Modernisme van die Witwatersrand se Argitekskool het verander na ‘n gebiedsgebonde uitdrukking by die nuwe Pretoria Skool end die invloed van lektore soos die pragmatiese Basil South (1915-1952) en Cole-Bowen (1904-1976) en kontektuele sensitiewe argitekte soos Helmut Strauch (1910-1970) en Norman Eaton (1902-1966) het die weg gebaan vir Fagan se eie argitektoniese taal. Die digotomië in Fagan se huislike argitektuur skep ‘n vars en onverwagse uitkoms, ‘n bemiddelde resultaat in ‘n ou idioom en ‘n nuwe taal vir ‘n nuwe tyd.