COMRIE & WILKINSON Architects & Urban Designers is a dynamic design-driven South African architectural and design practice, specialising in architecture and urban design. Its passion for cutting edge design is reflected in success achieved in national and international architectural and urban design competitions and the achievement of numerous awards for commercial, institutional and residential architecture.

The firm was initially established by Henri Comrie in 1996. He formed the partnership with Chris Wilkinson in 2000. Henri Comrie subsequently won a Commonwealth Scholarship and completed advanced urban design studies in the United Kingdom. After his return he opened Comrie Wilkinson (Cape) Architects and Urban Designers in Cape Town in 2005, with Chris Wilkinson continuing to manage the Comrie Wilkinson office in Pretoria. The two offices engage flexibly on projects, depending on scale, geographic location and/or the need to supplement skills. The practice focuses on contextual design and sensibly incorporates other important aspects such as aesthetics, comfort, detail design, cost constraints and climatic considerations. The latter all contribute to a timeless end product, which is not only unique and appropriate architecturally, but is a worthwhile investment.

The practice also has experience in larger scale urban design projects. It can assist clients or developers during the initial or planning phases of a project by producing an urban design framework, which addresses problems holistically and focuses on various levels of detail. These frameworks can range from large scale planning frameworks, which can for example be used to accompany zoning applications, to detailed architectural design codes. These architectural design codes enable various designers to work within a preset framework, based on a client’s vision for a development precinct or can simply be used to maintain a certain architectural character or specific scale.

Since the establishment of the practice, Comrie + Wilkinson has nurtured a successful professional relationship with urban designer and architect Gary White (B Arch., UOFS, 1991; M Urban Design, UCT, 1993) and has successfully collaborated with him in various architecture and urban design competitions.

Chris Wilkinson [Born 1966]

Bachelor of Architecture. University of the Free State [1991]

South African Architecture Student of the Year [1991]

Employed by various commercial practices [1992 - 1998]

Collaborate with Henri Comrie on various projects [1998 - 1999]

Partner in Comrie + Wilkinson Architects & Urban Designers [1999]

Nominated for Daimler Chrysler Award [2007]

Henri Comrie [Born 1965]