Project: Winelands Villa / Location: Cape Town, South Africa / Architect: ARRCC / Location: Cape Town / Photography: Adam Letch

Based in Cape Town, South Africa, ARRCC designed this custom home with a muted palette and clean lines that emphasize the “vastness of the surrounding landscape as the key focal point.”

Set along the banks of the Berg River in South Africa’s Paarl–Franschhoek Valley, the Winelands Villa sits within a landscape of rehabilitated fynbos, South Africa’s iconic shrubland. The Drakenstein, Simonsberg and Paarl Rock Mountains create a striking backdrop, informing the home’s architectural gestures.

Within the Gentleman’s Estate at Val de Vie, aesthetic guidelines honor the Provençal and Cape region’s vernacular—pitched roofs, timber rafters, natural materials of stone and off-shutter concrete balanced by white plastered walls. ARRCC embraced this framework not as limitation but as a foundation for reinterpretation, pushing them toward a language of contemporary refinement.

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The client brief called for an H-shaped home—functional, familiar. ARRCC reimagined it as a cruciform of five interlocking squares: one central pavilion for living and dining and four extending arms housing bedrooms, the kitchen and utilities. Expansive pocket doors slide away to dissolve the boundary between interior and exterior, each arm capturing a different relationship—mountain, garden, river and light. The resulting plan creates a series of green pockets and courtyards that feel quilted into the landscape.

Emphasized by exposed timber-clad beams, the pitched roof shapes a soaring double-height entrance and lofty lounge while establishing a rhythmic framework that guides the eye outward and shapes the character of every interior space. Clerestory windows trace the roofline, flooding interiors with natural light and drawing in the “vastness of the surrounding landscape.”

The lounge centers on a hand-chiseled sandstone plinth anchoring a sculptural fireplace—a tactile focal point dividing living and dining while echoing the raw textures of the land. In the kitchen, a monolithic stone island extends the sightline toward the outdoors, reinforcing the home’s openness and connection to the landscape.

In the master suite, floor-to-ceiling glass opens fully to sweeping views, while the en suite bath continues the theme of seamless integration, creating a “sense of unmediated connection with its natural setting.” A central glass shower forms both focal point and frame for the view beyond, its openness heightened by the pitched ceiling.

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Beyond the living area, sheltered terraces offer refuge from prevailing winds and, on one side, open toward a pool with a resort-like quality, while keeping the charm and ease of residential living. A long, elegant canopy folds down to host a subtle waterfall, providing shade and privacy while framing views of the sky. Integrated seating and a floating island lounger extend over the water, creating an experience that is both luxurious and understated.

Throughout, the home’s material palette finds harmony in contrast—warm timber, off-shutter concrete, white plaster walls, and screed floors balance raw texture with refined surfaces, warm with cool tones. Each space speaks the same language of clean lines, natural materials, and a muted palette that allows the surrounding landscape to remain the star.

The Winelands Villa stands as both reflection and reinterpretation—a study in how architecture can honor place, material, and light. The strong linear framework and rhythmic motif of the timber-clad beams guides the eye upward and outward, drawing interiors into a continuous dialogue with the surrounding landscape. While respecting the estate guidelines, ARRCC demonstrates that “stylistic limitations need not hamper a rich and unique architectural response,” achieving a design that is contemporary, precise and connected to place.

Cat Ford is an architectural designer and freelance writer in Boston.