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Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria
Sector
Education
Completion
February 2005
Highlights & Achievements
Coordinated the external façade design and detailing, using locally available materials to meet performance and aesthetic goals in a cost-effective manner.
Resolved complex junctions between structural and envelope elements, ensuring water-tightness and thermal comfort through detailed 2D CAD drawings.
Facilitated manual coordination of architectural layouts with structural and M&E systems, preventing on-site clashes and ensuring efficient service routing.
Developed ceiling and joinery packages for classrooms, lecture theatres, libraries, and administrative spaces, aligning with user needs and local fabrication capabilities.
Delivered technical detailing for a tiered auditorium, addressing acoustic, sightline, HVAC, and AV requirements without digital modelling tools.
Collaborated closely with engineers, AV consultants, and contractors to ensure buildability and regulatory compliance (SANS) throughout the project.
Demonstrated strong coordination, problem-solving, and technical delivery on a high-profile educational facility serving legal faculty and student needs.
Location
Pretoria, South Africa
The Faculty of Law building at the University of Pretoria articulates the values of the legal discipline—transparency, gravitas, and accessibility—through an architecture of spatial legibility.
Anchored by a multi-storey circulatory spine beneath a light steel canopy, the design establishes a strong linear axis that connects office wings, seminar rooms, and auditoria. Courtyards open onto this gallery, fostering natural light, cross-ventilation, and moments of quiet repose within the academic environment.
The building's eastern entrance aligns with an existing campus avenue, integrating the intervention with the broader urban grain. On the southern façade, the Oliver Tambo Law Library—fully glazed and shaded by mature trees—acts as both a landmark and a luminous interior volume.
The architectural language employs a deliberate juxtaposition of solid white masonry volumes and lightweight glazed elements, reinforcing themes of stability and openness. Circulation towers and auditoria are articulated as projecting volumes, legible both spatially and tectonically.
Located along a previously fragmented campus edge, the building mediates between institutional space and the surrounding city, reinforcing connectivity and urban integration. Passive environmental strategies, including orientation, shading, and natural ventilation, are sensitively adapted to Pretoria’s climate.
