Leading Architecture + Design February/March 2022
A proud moment for our Urban Design team!
We’re delighted to share that we received an Award of Commendation at the 2026 UDISA Awards last night.
A sincere thank you to our incredible team, and to UDISA for this recognition!
#GAPP #UDISA #UrbanDesign
We’re proud to introduce Markus Jordaan as our newest Associate!
With his thoughtful approach and dedication to design excellence, Markus continues to strengthen our team and shape the work we’re passionate about.
#GAPP #NewAssociate
Welcome to this new chapter, Markus!
25 years of holding memory, truth, and reckoning.
The Apartheid Museum stands not only as a place of exhibition, but as an experience- one that moves you, quite literally, through history. Lindsay Bremner, South African scholar and architect, and current Professor of Architecture at the University of Westminster, describes the experience as one of controlled manipulation, where visitors ascend and descend, creating a sense of distance from the outside world and an entrance into an unknown, unpredictable realm.
As Johannesburg marks a year of significant milestones, the museum’s 25th anniversary reminds us that remembrance is an active practice. This Human Rights Day (Saturday, 21 March), South Africans are invited to step into this history, with free entry for all.
We’re proud to introduce Leon Bekker as GAPP’s newest Director!
Leon’s journey with the practice has been marked by thoughtful design thinking and a deep curiosity about the built environment.
As he steps into this new leadership role, we look forward to the ideas, energy, and vision he will continue to bring to GAPP!
Join us in congratulating Leon on this exciting milestone!
#GAPP
We are incredibly honoured to see Ellerman House featured in The Scape Gold Key: Hospitality Edition - a special volume celebrating hospitality spaces where design becomes part of the journey itself, inseparable from the experience of arrival and stay.
Thank you to the Scape team for including GAPP in such inspiring company.
Read the full feature in Vol. 126 of Scape @scape_magazine
We kicked off the year with a creative vision board session across our Johannesburg and Cape Town studios.
From dream projects and bold urban interventions to reimagining our own office spaces, our teams mapped out what they want to design, build and shape in the year ahead. It was an afternoon of creativity, collaboration and a shared sense of purpose.
Here’s to a year of intentional design, ambitious thinking and bringing these visions to life!
Established Informal Learning Spaces
Our Client’s brief was to create 12 informal outdoor learning spaces -four on each campus- that were universally accessible and adaptable to various student needs.
GAPP Architects & Urban Designers identified suitable placement locations on each campus, taking into account the maze of underground services.
The informal learning pods were designed to encourage social interaction by providing informal learning and gathering spaces that formed part of the landscape. The proposed locations were positioned along landscaped edges leading off the main arterial walkways, allowing the pods’ paved floors to be integrated seamlessly with existing pathways for improved accessibility.
Each pod is equipped with solar powered lighting and a USB charging station, enabling students to gather, connect and learn in a sustainable outdoor setting.
#GAPP
We’re so excited to welcome the latest additions to the GAPP team!
Dhiantha is an Architect with experience across a diverse mix of project typologies, both locally and internationally. She’s passionate about creating spaces that connect people to place, blending creativity with a practical, grounded approach to design. Always curious and collaborative, Dhiantha thrives on fresh ideas - but only after a good cup of coffee to kickstart the day. When she’s not deep in design work, you’ll likely find her on a yoga mat, sketching illustrations, painting murals, or getting lost in a good book - all part of keeping the creative spark alive.
Suné Enslin, an Urban Designer with a Town Planning background, believes that planning is everything. She is deeply interested in how spatial layouts shape everyday life, from how places are used and experienced to how they influence identity, behaviour, and long-term resilience. When she’s not thinking about cities and spatial systems, she enjoys crocheting -a creative outlet that mirrors her love for thoughtful structure, patience, and detail.
Meet Darshini Chetty, our Creative and Marketing Lead. With a background spanning both art and architecture, she loves exploring the space where structure meets storytelling. When she’s not pushing pixels or a paintbrushes, you’ll find her watching ’90s cartoons, illustrating or café hopping.
