Contemporary design and construction methods often entail large amounts of wastage, high
construction costs, high energy consumption for heating and cooling, and thus a large carbon
footprint, which limits their sustainability. While South Africaâs granting of much-needed houses to
the indigent population is noteworthy, the quality of these houses sometimes leaves much to be
desired. In addition, the cultural identity of the inhabitants of these houses is being lost.
The purpose of this study is to determine if vernacular architecture and building techniques could be
a possible solution to the above-mentioned problems concerning contemporary design in the
Eastern Cape. Five case studies were conducted for this research. The first involved a perception
analysis â through a questionnaire â of inhabitants of vernacular and contemporary homes in
uMasizakhe, Graaff-Reinet. The next two case studies involved documenting the now-demolished
Luxolweni community on the outskirts of Hofmeyr and three now-demolished rondavels surrounding
Hofmeyr. The last two case studies are of recently-built contemporary designs. The first is a
vernacular building in rural Centane and the second is a building steeped in innovations for
sustainability in East London.
The main results from the study revealed that the material properties of vernacular buildings are in
many ways superior to their contemporary counterparts (these houses are cooler in summer and
warmer in winter), vernacular homes are considered socio-culturally acceptable by their inhabitants,
vernacular techniques can be successfully incorporated into contemporary architecture and that
innovations can be incorporated within vernacular architecture for longevity. It was concluded that
vernacular architecture has the potential to improve human settlements and the sustainability of the
built environment, as well as strengthening the cultural identity of the local populace. This research
is relevant in a country where buildings are often unsustainable and housing is lacking, as it offers a
potential solution to these problems.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:ufs/oai:etd.uovs.ac.za:etd-07182013-104422 |
| Date | 18 July 2013 |
| Creators | Steenkamp, Colleen Avice |
| Contributors | Prof WH Peters, Mr G Bosman |
| Publisher | University of the Free State |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | en-uk |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://etd.uovs.ac.za//theses/available/etd-07182013-104422/restricted/ |
| Rights | unrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached hereto a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to University Free State or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
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