There is an intensity to the red of an African sky. At Leloko, with the water and mountain as a natural frame, it is an immense canvas coloured by sunrise and sunset. Just beyond your windows, there is space to breathe, to grow, to flex the soul.

From earliest times stone was chosen for its strength, resistance to the elements and its natural colour and texture. It is shelter and protection and there is power in its weight. From slate to sandstone, it is raw inspiration for designers.

The beauty of wood is that in a skilled craftsman’s hands, its toughness is transformed. Intricate grain, soft colours, texture and flexibility provide something uncanny and unique; shelter, furniture, art, walkways, decks, utensils and a barrier to the world. It has both beauty and brawn.

Mud and clay spawned the earliest shelters for man. Only those in tune with the earth know its power to heal and regenerate. There is no single colour to earth. Sun-bleached mud, the soft ochre of clays, ox-hide red and mineral-rich black offer great inspiration to architects in tune with the land.

It is Africa’s most precious resource, water. Summer’s heat sucks it skywards only for seasonal thunderstorms to toss it earthwards once more. Highveld winters sap its moisture. The cycle rests in nature’s hands yet it remains for us to guard it, protect it and use it well. Living near it is both a privilege and a pleasure.