South African Institute of Architects Rome Scholar
Jaco Booyens (October 2001–March 2002)
During 2001 I entered and won a design competition for a 9-month
scholarship and residency at the British School of Rome. The
design brief was to design a Trade mission for Africa on the
historical site of the Castel Sant'Angelo. The building has a
history dating back to Roman Emperor Hadrian. The main
pedestrian axis aligning with St Peters Cathedral at the Vatican
cut through the site touching the edge of the River Tiber at the
entrance to Castel Sant'Angelo.
I proposed a building that stood on one of the existing remains of
the Castel's medieval walls. The main facade was orientated to
the west. The design included an active shading system using
a pulley system operated by gravity water counterweights.
Empty containers were filled with water turning them into
counterweights lifting the shade screens and when the water
was drained the screens would close. This action was controlled
on a timer closing the screens during the afternoon when the west
sun was at the worst. The screens then formed the edge of a
public collonade of which many examples can be seen in Rome.
Previous prominent architects from South African history that
attended the British School of Rome were Roeloff
Uytenbogaardt and Norman Eaton. Jaco Booyens up to date has
been the only awardee from the University of Pretoria.
Jaco Booyens (October 2001–March 2002)
During 2001 I entered and won a design competition for a 9-month
scholarship and residency at the British School of Rome. The
design brief was to design a Trade mission for Africa on the
historical site of the Castel Sant'Angelo. The building has a
history dating back to Roman Emperor Hadrian. The main
pedestrian axis aligning with St Peters Cathedral at the Vatican
cut through the site touching the edge of the River Tiber at the
entrance to Castel Sant'Angelo.
I proposed a building that stood on one of the existing remains of
the Castel's medieval walls. The main facade was orientated to
the west. The design included an active shading system using
a pulley system operated by gravity water counterweights.
Empty containers were filled with water turning them into
counterweights lifting the shade screens and when the water
was drained the screens would close. This action was controlled
on a timer closing the screens during the afternoon when the west
sun was at the worst. The screens then formed the edge of a
public collonade of which many examples can be seen in Rome.
Previous prominent architects from South African history that
attended the British School of Rome were Roeloff
Uytenbogaardt and Norman Eaton. Jaco Booyens up to date has
been the only awardee from the University of Pretoria.
