The KwaZulu-Natal Institute for Architecture (KZNIA) recently welcomed its new President.
Ruben Reddy, owner of his own nationally based practice, was inducted at a ceremony, sponsored by Patron of Architecture, Corobrik. Reddy said that his two-year presidency would be informed by the already accepted vision of ‘City’, ‘Town’ and ‘Village’ and would focus on programmes that would contribute to the NDP, in particular, job creation, equality and the eradication of poverty. “This will drive the public debate on density, diversity, connectivity and promotion of public space as solutions to our crisis,” he explained. “None of these are personal but are led by Andrew Makin and George Elphick and adopted by members of the KZNIA committee as a means to broaden membership and promote the relevance of the institute in our current context.”Bridging the gap
Also central to his presidency will be the drive to strengthen links to the public authorities and universities.The practice of architecture currently is at the mercy of various authorities and the training of architects is hugely under threat because of the lack of funding to Departments of Architecture.
It is vital to reduce the distance between the practice of the profession, with those that judge our work and with those that are to follow us into practice life. “This regional committee will not be scared to speak its mind. It will challenge authorities to be efficient in dealing with matters of our built form. It would re-engage on Issues of Heritage. It is this profession that is central to the current debate on symbols of heritage. We need to take the lead!”
