If you venture out to Maboneng Precinct, the rejuventated business and residential district in the heart of Johannesburg, you will discover the Living Room – a rooftop bar and the brainchild of Tiakaya Designz owner, Taryn Jacobson. Tiakaya is a design company offering interior/exterior spatial solutions and unique landscaping installations.
Housed in an entrepreneurial office building, The Main Change, Living Room was designed to achieve the following:
- Create an experiential environment showcasing vertical gardens and other unique Tiakaya designs and urban landscaping techniques.
- Spread awareness for ambush – Tikaya’s public benefit greening project and other eco-activism groups.
- Share a passion for plants, unique species and diverse planting techniques.
- Create a business that epitomises and showcases a conscious green lifestyle.
- Host conscious and creative events in a unique setting.
What services do you offer?
Living Room is a multifunctional space offering:
1. Eco-system
Revive unused spaces and create an environment for the return of wildlife and indigenous planting in the city.
2. Urban Café
Offer a fresh and healthy twist on fusion foods – designed to appeal to South African palate. At the Living Room you will find freshly squeezed and pressed juices, super food smoothies and raw food treats. The deli offers baskets of home-made dips, falafels and other favorites from the café menu.
3. Bar
Every Thursday night and Sunday afternoon the venue hosts parties offering a full bar and delicious, fresh cocktails. There’s also fantastic live music by Jozi’s best promoters and musicians.
4. Design
Tiakaya has built the entire space for the Living Room. It is a great showcase of all the design solutions and green event decor that we offer.
5. Shop
Plants, decor and jewellery is for sale in store and made to order.
What inspired you to open a restaurant in Maboneng?
The Maboneng Precinct encourages urban rejuvenation through an artistic community; and the Living Room was intended to be the green lung of the precinct – providing not only fresh food to eat in the area but also the experiential atmosphere to relax in a natural setting, providing you with the space to take a break from the city chaos in a high-rise garden oasis.
Tell us a bit about the design of the Living Room.
The design style is an eclectic mix showcasing the bohemian chic style that Tiakaya is known for. An organic business, we allow for space to develop organically, and our visitors have the opportunity to watch our space grow as the precinct and city grows and blooms.
The rooftop was designed for multifunctional use, from a relaxed, lounging weekday setup and an open rooftop for dancing to a high-end furniture and decor setup for corporate functions or formal seating for weddings/private functions. As all of the workmanship was done by Tiakaya, much of the furniture and decor includes recycled materials. The “garden lab” in the corner serves to prepare plant decor, grow edibles, and experiment with plants that will survive in the new ecosystem. The perimeter planting includes herbs and indigenous plants for sound absorption, culinary use, companion planting, and attracting bees, birds and butterflies. The trees and cascading potted foliage divides the space into private garden sections and offer visual treats for all spaces.
The design intended is growing into its full urban jungle potential.
Top 5 trends in landscape design:
- Using indigenous planting to recreate formal international styles with an eco-conscious flavour.
- The return of indigenous and wild flowers.
- Creating tonal variety utilising a variety of shades of green, and the use of raw and re-purposed materials such as wood and aged steel.
- Contained and wild untamed vegetable gardens. People want to see how fruits and vegetable grow. Knowledge of the origins of their food is pivotal.
- The use of plants in interiors and great design in exteriors – bringing nature into interior spaces, and taking great design to exterior areas.
- Growing plants on your balcony with lattices and planter boxes on decks, and most exciting planting on roofs.
What inspires you?
Changing the space and environment of the city, garden by garden, watching the growth and strengthening of our amazing team who are brought together by a shared passion for plants and beautiful design and seeing the response of the public to our rooftop jungle. The experience and style created at Living Room has allowed our gardening passion and ability to reach a huge audience as opposed to restricting it to the luxury of those who can afford our most premium technologies and decor. The platform created for our social initiatives has also been a great inspiration.
Philosophically, as a designer, I love the interplay of interior and exterior. I love to watch the wonders of the exterior environment meet those of the interior and I feel especially inspired when Tiakaya has the honour of creating the introduction.
Any advice for young landscape designers:
Be adventurous with your designs, use indigenous plants where possible and be inspired by changing global colour trends. Hard work pays off and adapting to change can be your best asset.
Address:
5th Floor, 20 Kruger Street (Between Fox and Main), Maboneng Precinct, City and Suburban
Opening Times:
Monday to Wednesday: 11:00AM to 6:00PM
Thursday: 11:00AM to 8:00PM
Friday: Closed
Saturday to Sunday: 12:00PM to 8:00PM
For more information, visit www.tiakaya.co.za/livingroom/, www.facebook.com/The.Living.Room.JHB and www.facebook.com/The.Living.Room.JHB
