THE WOMEN SIGNIFICANTLY CONTRIBUTING TO DHK’S LARGE-SCALE PROJECTS
National Women’s Day in South Africa is celebrated annually on 9 August. The public holiday commemorates the
country’s 1956 Women’s March and pays respect to the sacrifices, triumphs and contributions women have made
towards society. dhk credits much of its success not only to the remarkable female partners and senior associates
at the helm of the studio but the highly skilled and dedicated women working in the studio trenches. Here, we
spotlight several women who are intrinsic to some of dhk’s latest new work...
Brogan Bradfield: Urban Designer +
Professional Town Planner
Brogan, an urban designer and town planner
at dhk, was part of the winning Conradie
Park Bid Consortium. One of the five ‘gamechanger
projects’ within the Western Cape,
the 22.1ha project required rigorous urban
design efforts to guarantee delivery of dignified and integrated spaces
while ensuring that it remained financially feasible. Brogan was
involved in the formation of the urban design framework and the
master plan of the site, as well as generating the precinct plans for
the planning application.
Claudia Mela:
Senior Architect / Associate
Claudia is an architect and associate at dhk,
as well as a key member of the Johannesburg
studio. She is leading the teams working on
Oxford Parks, a 300,000m 2 new pedestrianised
precinct, as well as Ellipse Waterfall, a 620-
unit apartment complex in Waterfall City. She oversees the design,
coordination, documentation and construction of both projects in-line
with the client’s brief and in compliance with statutory regulations.
Her key responsibilities entail managing project teams, chairing team
meetings, preparing local authority submissions and managing the
planning and delivery processes.
Ilona Botes: Architect
Ilona is an architect and a critical member of
the team working on the mixed-use Longkloof
Precinct in Cape Town. She works alongside
the partners steering the project and is
responsible for the full architectural design
package required for client and hotel operator
sign-off, requisite council and heritage submissions. She also worked
closely with the client, hotel operator and interior designers, on the
design development, interior look-and-feel of common areas, retail,
back-of-house areas and an important and complex part of a large
prestigious hotel.
Stefania Siniscalchi: Landscape Architect
A leading landscape architect at dhk, Stefania
is currently working on several large-scale
projects within the Cape Town studio.
Her portfolio of work includes guiding the
landscaping at Conradie Park, focussing on
the courtyard spaces and planting strategy, as
well as steering the park design and planting for Balwin residential
developments, The Huntsman and Fynbos. Stefania is also working
on the hard and soft landscaping throughout the entire Longkloof
Precinct, as well as developing the precinct branding and identity -
bringing life to the 112-year-old revitalised heritage site.
Wardah Razak: Senior Architectural
Technologist / Associate
A senior architectural technologist, Wardah
is involved in all stages of the architectural
process, particularly the technical development
and detailing across a wide range of building
typologies. Working alongside dhk’s head of
technical design, she is currently building dhk’s library of details and
feeding the IP into new projects to ensure maximum efficiency.
Wardah champions the Go for Gold initiative which provides students
from disadvantaged communities the opportunity to enhance their
architectural education through a year-long internship at dhk and
mentorship throughout their tertiary education.
Sarah Tarr: Architect
Sarah is the project architect on Sable
Corner, an A-grade five-storey commercial
building that forms a gateway into Century
City. Sarah has been involved in the project
since its inception in 2016, from the design
phase to its completion this year. Her role
was to seamlessly integrate the compelling design vision with the
opportunities and limitations that the site and project provided,
as well as to consider economic realities. Her contribution
resulted in an attractive, high-quality and cost-effective landmark
commercial building.
Ellipse Waterfall Conradie Park Sable Corner
News Watch 11