On a recent visit to the Resource Centre of the Johannesburg Heritage Foundation at the Holy Family College, Oxford Road, Johannesburg, a new acquisition was on display, namely a brass name plate from the architectural firm “Kallenbach, Kennedy and Furner ARIBA Architects“. The brass plaque had been donated to JHF by Ronald Sutherland of Durban.
Holy Famly College (The Heritage Portal)
It is a beautiful solid brass plate and is from the Durban offices of Kallenbach, Kennedy and Furner. It was originally in position at their offices on the 3rd floor, Yorkshire House, Field Street Durban and dates from at least as early as 1935 probably earlier.
Here is a wonderful memento of an architectural practice with a long history and a strong presence in Johannesburg and Durban with some fine buildings erected in Cape Town, Kimberley, and in other South African towns. Clive Chipkin in Johannesburg Style describes the firm as “a household name in the 1930s.”
Book Cover
Kallenbach, Kennedy and Furner was among the most successful architectural firms of the interwar period in South Africa. Their reputation was solid and their output prodigious. They designed synagogues (e.g. the Benoni synagogue...
