35TH COROBRIK LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE AWARDS

Staff writer

Mar 14, 20221 min read

A final year thesis that uncovers land restitution prospects by exploring landscape design opportunities has resulted in Kwezi Futshane from the University of Cape Town winning the Most Innovative Final Year Landscape Architecture Award as part of the 2022 Corobrik Student Architecture Awards. He received an R8 000 first prize, while runner up Kelvin Green received a R6 000 prize. The awards highlight talent, help to jump-start careers and build the industry.

Entitled “How to design a landscape that celebrates Khoesan indigeneity and heritage”, Futshane’s project sheds light on the historic sensitivities within the Two Rivers Urban Park in Cape Town, focusing its design strategy mainly on the contested River Club site.

He says it is important for landscape architects to be recognised as they can impact the constantly changing socio-economic fabric and their layered design thinking skills open doors for impactful environmental solutions. He adds that the awards also give a sense of appreciation for the close relationships that companies like Corobrik are willing to establish with landscape architecture firms and businesses.

Using Corobrik’s products in his designs, Futshane says he was able to explore several clay paving options and combinations. It was essential for the project design to accommodate various forms of movement, whether walking with someone in a wheelchair or cycling.

Green’s thesis was entitled “Overcoming the M5: An approach to reducing the inequality in the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town.”