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MenuHomeUpfront Now Up Books Towns Structures People Firms Lexicon | SACHS, FeoBorn: 1922 07 06ArchitectSACA:Reg No: 1803 Year registered: 1957 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
DipArch 1949 (Witwatersrand). Feo Sachs was born in Roodepoort, then Transvaal, South Africa. His Mother's desire that he should become a concert violinist had him from age 6-13 practicing 7 hours a day. He revolted at 13 and went to full time school for the first time in Grade 7. Matriculated Grade 12 3 years later at 16. After school in 1937 he spent one year in an insurance office. In 1939 he applied to join the South African Air Force. He was accepted and started training as Navigator / Bomb Aimer. He was sent to North Africa on active service. On July 3 1943 on his 31st mission he was shot down by Lufwaffe over Sicily, parachuted into the Mediterranean, was picked up by the Italian Navy and sent to a POW hospital. He was released 3 weeks later by invading US Airborne troops. He was demobilised in 1945 after spending last 2 years instructing aircrew. In 1946 he started studying at University of the Witwatersrand where he gained a Diploma in Architecture in 1949. He also worked part-time in the office of HANSON, TOMKIN and FINKELSTEIN. He worked in Architects' offices in Johannesburg for two years and then moved to London as Senior Architect Assistant at Tripe & Wakeham, working on Schools and Hospitals in Kuwait. He married Rodne' Payn in 1951. He returned to Cape Town in 1955 and worked for 2 years in the office of Max POLICANSKY on office blocks and shops. He moved back to Johannesburg in 1956 to work with his friend, Monty SACK, Chief Architect to the Schlesinger Organisation, a multifaceted corporation, developing apartment blocks and office buildings. He was allowed to do private work at this time, and designed a pharmaceutical factory for Smith, Kline & French at Isando, Johannesburg. At this time he designed, and had built, the first of his own, ultimately 4, houses. In 1963 he was in private practice with an old university friend in London, specializing in Hotel interiors and refurbishment. It was during this time (1966) that he designed the set of STACKING-LINKING Tables, and entered them for the Christian Holzapfel KG interdesign 2000 Competition. The jury consisted of Max Bill, JB Bakema, Count Sigvard Bernadotte, Herbert Hirche, Pierre Bertaux and others. The design was awarded a prize, and was kept by the sponsors for about three years, and finally returned to his copyright. Returning to Cape Town in 1970 he worked as a Senior Architect for REVEL FOX and PARTNERS for 3 years, and then as a Partner for a further 7 years, working on University and Technicon buildings, office blocks and private houses. In 1972 he designed the second of his 4 houses. This included an identical (but mirrored) house for his sister. In 1980 he decided once again that he would like to work on his own, and moved to Plettenberg Bay. The practice developed into a busy one-man operation based solely on new single-family houses, refurbishments and remodelling of existing homes and apartments. He designed and built House No. 3 in 1981 which was altered and added to twice over the years. Rodne' died in 1996 after 45 years of marriage. He married Carol Malan in 1999 and gained a ready-made family. After living for 24 years in House No. 3, he decided to design and build House No. 4 in 2004. "Here we are with 2 dogs, a cat and 15 goldfish". He closed the Architectural office in July 2008 to concentrate on designing furniture, light fittings, objects and whatever. "Oscar Niemeyer is 100 years old and is still designing buildings". Transcribed from CV submitted by Mike Louw, September 2022. List of projects With photographs With notes
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