Tree House

TREE HOUSE

2019, Johannesburg, South Africa

This small labour of love was built for three brothers in an old and winding jacaranda tree. The treehouse connects to the garden via a narrow bridge to two raised platforms fitted with swings, ropes and a fireman’s pole to lose oneself in hours under the grand tree.

A spiral staircase winds around the trunk and is propped by branches severed from the tree. This carries you up into a whimsical space of fantasy tied together with a latte balustrade secured with twine, reminiscent of a bridge you may find in an ancient forest.

We, with architect and friend Nico van Loggerenberg, obsessed about detailing the structure to fit as naturally with the tree and the surrounding garden. This was done through carefully hiding the structural details to keep a raw and natural feeling of the treehouse.