Interior design, in its most refined expression, has the capacity to direct the way we feel and interact with the space around us. The Guild Residency, occupying the expansive third floor of a Bauhaus-inspired apartment block in the urban heart of Cape Town, is an ode to the potency of well-intentioned design.
Curated by two of the continent’s foremost gallerists, the apartment is home to a discerning collection of painting, sculpture, handmade design and bespoke furniture. Trevyn and Julian McGowan, the founders of Southern Guild gallery, envisaged an adaptable city space that would open its doors to designers, artists, curators, collectors, and like-minded creatives. The apartment is a keen reflection of the McGowans’ design ethos and curatorial know-how; everything here is considered, superbly crafted and thoroughly contemporary.
The light-filled apartment features floor-to-ceiling steel and glass windows, original wooden flooring, white-washed walls, and bathrooms clad in Carrera marble. Eschewing any prescriptive blueprint, the space is largely open plan. The living area, dining space and kitchen unfurl into one another, omitting the apartment’s three plush bedrooms and two accompanying bathrooms.
Southern Guild’s burgeoning list of represented artists and makers are well showcased; master ceramicist Madoda Fani offers an intricately carved wooden coffee table, while a vivid portrait by emerging artist Navel Seakamela graces a nearby wall. Works by designer Rich Mnisi, contemporary artist Jozua Gerrard, ceramicist Justine Mahoney, and furniture by Mali’s Cheick Diallo and South Africa’s Xavier Clarisse, all formidably find their place. The central living area’s sofa is a design of Julian’s own; a rich leather Chesterfield fluidly shaped into a rounded ‘U.’ True to the McGowans’ sensibilities, wild originality and beauty bear no cost to the functionality of all things.
Beyond the lounge area, a kitchen island stands at the head of the dining table made for 12; there is enough room here for unhurried dinners, afterparties, late-night gatherings of newly acquired friends. The surrounding windows overlook the rooftops and busied sidewalks of the CBD’s thriving Loop Street. Loft-like in its urban feeling, the Residency could well find itself above the streets of New York’s Tribecca or London’s Soho. The apartment is a walk away from some of Cape Town’s best restaurants, bars, fashion houses, night clubs and galleries. There is no more fitting address for those seeking the city’s nearby pleasures of sumptuous art, food, dance and drink.
What we love!
- The abundance of space and natural light, the apartment’s illustrious collection of local art and design.
- Immediate access to the city’s most fabulous offerings. The heritage district of Bo-Kaap, the V&A Waterfront and the Iziko National Gallery are minutes away.
- The vibrant pace and feeling of the area; you’re in the very center of Cape Town’s most fabulous and happening district.
What you need to know…
- This is a true city space; the apartment is located on Loop Street where the nights are just as dynamic as the days.
- The open-plan living and office areas are adaptable spaces offered to local and international artists. Visiting artists are welcome to come to create or simply rest and be inspired.
- There is lift access to and from the apartment.
Reviewed by Erin Katzeff