Normative Position
The ethos of our school is grounded in a belief that the role of the designer in the 21st century is to co-create a better future for the environments and societies within which we work, while honouring the diverse legacies that shaped the present. Human-centred design, practical community engagement, a solid grounding in the practicalities of environmentally responsible design, and an understanding of the nested systems within which designers operate, inform the regenerative design and development approach that is the hallmark of our Department.
Our vision
is to provide a learning environment that fosters critical and independent thinking, encourages ecosystemic accountability, and inspires responsive and responsible problem solving that contributes to the betterment of society and its environment.
Our mission
is to offer a rounded education, not just training, in order to produce technically competent graduates with the attributes and skills necessary to flourish in the rapidly changing world of the 21st century: an agile mindset, a holistic perspective, a capacity for critical reflection and complex problem solving, and the ability to envision different possible futures outside of the constraints of current practice, as well as empathy, personal adaptability and emotional intelligence.
Future-focused architecture education
"It is hoped that students who pass through the doors of the Boukunde building are not seduced by trends and forms of an inappropriate West, but to practise the simpler qualities supporting responsible design that my generation spoke of but mostly failed to apply, such as designing to suit the site, working with the weather constraints, topography, surrounding structures, and shared heritage, views, human scale and sustainability initiatives...
...but most importantly, to practise good manners"
Gawie Fagan, 2018
Celebrated South African Architect
History of the Department
The Department of Architecture was established at the University of Pretoria in 1943 and celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2018.
| 1908 | The first students registered for classes at the Pretoria Centre of the Transvaal University College (TUC). | |
| 1927 | The Architects and Quantity Surveyors Act, Act No. 18 of 1927, is promulgated. | |
| 1929 | Studies in Architecture are initiated at TUC with H Bell-John appointed as part-time professor. | |
| 1930 | The TUC becomes the University of Pretoria (UP). | |
| 1931 | Part-time classes in Architecture commence at UP. | |
| 1932 | UP is appointed as an examining authority in Architecture and Quantity Surveying. According to an agreement with Wits University, the syllabus in Architecture is prescribed and examinations conducted by Wits as the only school of Architecture, while UP prescribes the syllabus and conducts the examinations for quantity surveying. | |
| 1942 | The UP Council, with Gerard Moerdyk as chairman, ends the agreement with Wits and approves the presentation of courses in Architecture at UP. | |
| 1943 | The Department of Architecture and Quantity Surveying is formally founded in the Faculty of Science at UP as the third school of Architecture in South Africa. Prof At Meiring is appointed as the first full-time professor and Head of Department. The Department is situated in Vermeulen Street in the Pretoria inner city. Students can either enrol for a five-year full-time degree or a part-time diploma. | |
| 1957 | The Department moves to the Hatfield Campus and is located across the campus while a new building is being completed. | |
| 1960 | The Department moves into the newly completed Boukunde Building. | |
| 1961 | The part-time diploma course is replaced by an eight-year part-time degree, while the five-year full-time degree is extended to a minimum of six years. | |
| 1967 | The part-time programme is discontinued. Prof Alewyn Burger is appointed as Head of Department. | |
| 1971 | The Department’s name is changed to the Department of Architecture as quantity surveying becomes a separate entity. The new four-year Bachelor of Landscape Architecture is instituted. | |
| 1972 | Substantial reconstruction to the Boukunde Building is undertaken, which is completed in 1973. | |
| 1974 | The Bachelor of Architecture degree is reduced to five years as the year of work experience falls away. Students are required to work in practices during the university recess. | |
| 1983 | UP introduces a semester course system that has a significant impact on curricula. | |
| 1985 | Prof Dieter Holm is appointed as Head of Department. | |
| 1986 | Prof Chrisna du Plessis is appointed as Chair of the National Architecture Students Union. | |
| 1987 | The Department of Landscape Architecture becomes an independent entity under Prof Michael Murphy. | |
| 1988 | Prof Willem van Riet is appointed Head of the Department of Landscape Architecture. | |
| 1992 | The Division for Environmental Design and Management was established. | |
| 1993 | The Department of Architecture celebrates its golden jubilee. The first students enrol for a degree in interior design in the Department of Home Economics. | |
| 1994 | The first democratic elections are held in South Africa and the country is re-admitted to the Commonwealth. The Department’s professional degree in Architecture is accredited by the Royal Institute of British Architects in 1995. | |
| 1997 | The Department’s name is changed to the Department of Architecture and Landscape Architecture and the two programmes are re-amalgamated under Prof Schalk le Roux. | |
| 1999 | A new equifinal curriculum structure is implemented, which does away with the typical division between programmes. New three-year undergraduate degrees in Architecture and Landscape Architecture are launched. The programme in Interior Design is transferred to the Department of Architecture and the four-year Bachelor of Interior Design is accredited by the Federation of Interior Architects and Designers and Design South Africa. | |
| 2000 | A new faculty structure is implemented, and the School for the Built Environment is established. New tiered categories of professional registration for the architectural and landscape architectural professions are introduced. | |
| 2001 | The first cohort that enrolled for the new BSc(Arch) and BSc(LArch) degrees complete their undergraduate studies. | |
| 2002 | The first students enrol for the MArch(Prof), ML(Prof) and MInt(Prof) degrees. These are two-year postgraduate degrees with the option of a stand-alone honours year. The first students complete their studies towards the new BSc(Int) degree. | |
| 2003 | The programme in Landscape Architecture celebrates its 30th anniversary and the programme in Interior Architecture celebrates its 10th anniversary. | |
| 2004 | Prof Roger Fisher is appointed as Acting Head of Department until the appointment of Prof ’Ora Joubert. The two-year professional postgraduate degrees are divided into a one-year honours degree, followed by a one-year professional master’s degree. | |
| 2009 | Prof Karel Bakker is appointed as Head of Department. | |
| 2014 | Prof Karel Bakker passes away on 19 November 2014. | |
| 2015 | Prof Chrisna du Plessis is appointed as Head of Department. | |
| 2016 | Renovations to the Boukunde Building commence, under the supervision of alumni Karlien Thomashoff of Thomashoff + Partner Architects. | |
| 2017 | Construction starts on the remodelling of the Boukunde Building, which would serve as a living laboratory for architecture students. | |
| 2018 | The Department celebrates its 75th anniversary. The new Boukunde Building is completed and staff and students take up residence in their new home. | |
| 2019 | Establishment of the Unit for Urban Citizenship and collaboration with the Mamelodi Community Learning Collaborative. | |
| 2020 | Expansion of research areas into smart cities and neighbourhoods, and resilient and regenerative cities. | |
| 2021 | Contribution to the establishment of the Hatfield Digital Twin City Initiative as the Department moves into the digital space. Presentation of the undergraduate degrees in Landscape and Interior Architecture is phased out and a new interdisciplinary undergraduate Architecture curriculum is launched. |