SHADOW PLAY

Bold ideas meet old bones in a Victorian house in Richmond, the historic Karoo town. Here, architect Jan Sauer layers mood, memory and a touch of mischief

- text LORI COHEN photographs GREG COX production SVEN ALBERDING

From the street, it looks like a postcard.

A crisp black-and-white tiled patio (referred to as stoep in these parts), hedging with a playful twist and classic Victorian fretwork all basking under the vast, bright sky of the Karoo. Walk through the front door of this Richmond small-town home and you realise quickly: this house doesn't play it safe.

Named 'House of Light and Shadow', architect Jan Sauer was principle in the transformation of this slice of history in South Africa's semi-desert north. The house was once part of a row of bookshops, some of the first structures built in the area. 'They'd fallen into disrepair,' says Jan. 'But I loved them from the start. You could see the potential immediately.'

This is not your typical restoration. Jan, who may have trained as an architect but has an intuitive eye for interiors, isn't interested in pastiche or overly polished finishes. He's interested in mood, flow and spaces that feel lived-in. 'I don't like building new things if there's something old with potential,' he says. 'I try to keep the history intact.'