Pieter-Ernst Mare’s Wide-ranging Interests and Clever Use of Neutrals Make His Home a Resolved Showcase for His Art and Collectibles
Architect Pieter-Ernst Mare’s Johannesburg apartment might be in the heart of Sandton’s CBD, surrounded by the massive reflective glass forms of the corporate headquarters, hotels and shopping centres that characterise Africa’s richest square mile, but you’d never guess it. It’s not in a residential skyscraper, but rather an artefact of the past – one of 25 double-storey units surrounding a private park that somehow persists in the heart of the glass-and-iron jungle. ‘It doesn’t feel like Sandton,’ says Pieter-Ernst. In fact, once you’re through the front door, leafy trees screen off the looming towers all around and you could be anywhere.
When he moved in, Pieter-Ernst commissioned an almost floor-to-ceiling oil painting by Riaan Bosch that completely blocks out a street-facing window in the dining room. Other than this clever adjustment, the traditional feel and neutral backdrop of the flat weren’t changed as the space was perfect for Pieter-Ernst’s two great loves: art and the ‘travel knickknacks’ he searches for wherever he goes.
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