“In Johannesburg, there is no mountain,” says architect Anthony Orelowitz. “There’s no sea.” He is referring to Table Mountain in Cape Town. Houses in Cape Town tend to look outwards, seeking to catch a glimpse of the ocean or frame a view of the mountain. “Here, you have to create your own habitat,” Anthony says.
That, at heart, was the basis of his response to Johannesburg’s urban character when he designed his own home in the city’s famously forested suburbs. Anthony is primarily a commercial architect. His firm, Paragon, is responsible for some of the city’s most significant architectural landmarks. But, he says, “I hadn’t done a house in nearly 15 years.” Nevertheless, working closely with architect Elliot Marsden and interior designer Julia Day, he conjured a vision of what…
