LUIS FERREIRA-DA-SILVA

Charles Marinier and I worked together for two years in my Durban practice before my move to Johannesburg. During this period, he became a partner and took co-charge and responsibility for the firm and its staff. This included the construction and completion of the King of Swaziland’s palace and other ongoing projects.

He is a well-respected Architect known and admired for his use of space, volume and detail. He proved himself as a competent senior Architect with a flair for design and administration and later continued to grow his own firm as a successful Architect in Johannesburg with a wide scope of projects encompassing all types of architecture.

I can only absolutely recommend and wish Charles a great future ahead in the UK.

PETER LEON

I have known Charles Marinier for some thirty years and have employed him professionally on a number of renovations to my home in Johannesburg over the years. All of these have been conducted well without any issues given Charles’s technical skills and great eye for detail.

Last July, I purchased a mews house in Marylebone. Although the house had been remodelled in 1994 and lightly renovated by the previous owners (who upgraded the kitchen and single bathroom), it was clear to me that it needed substantial remodelling to bring it up to the required standard.

I requested Charles to oversee the project as the supervising architect (despite both of us being out of the country owing to the lockdown at the time). Although I appointed a local project management firm who in turn appointed the contractors, it was clear to me, early on in the project, that the project management company were out of their depth technically. Charles and the designer I subsequently appointed effectively rescued the project and turned what could have been a disaster into a magnificent renovation of which I was finally able to take occupation last month.

I have no hesitation in recommending Charles for any position he is looking for in the architectural field in London or elsewhere. He is technically competent, commercially astute with an excellent eye for detail – all of which are key for any successful architectural project. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you require any further information.

 

B JOHN COWDRY

Charles Marinier was the architect on our Johannesburg (South Africa) property, a large-scale project which, whilst starting as a renovation became more of a new-build. We wanted to keep, broadly, the layout of the original homestead that we had purchased, and to preserve and use some of the original late-19th / early-20th century stone foundations, which Charles seamlessly incorporated into the design of the new dwelling.

We worked with him closely from the inception of the project, as our brief evolved from its infancy at the start of the enterprise, until building commenced, and all through the building works. He interpreted our thinking into solid, attractive design, and produced a home which filled our requirements completely and suited us in all respects.

Charles was involved all through the construction phase, meticulously producing all of the very detailed drawings required for construction purposes, managing our contractor, and maintaining quality control throughout. His outstanding sense of design aesthetic and proportion resulted in a circa 500 square metre home that was a joy to look at and a pleasure to live in.

We sold the property for what we understand was amongst the highest prices (per square metre) for our neighbourhood and that, when it was on-sold some 8 years later, it again achieved a record price.

Having employed Charles when we built our Johannesburg home, he was the obvious choice of design consultant for us on the large-scale renovation of our Holland Park apartment. His design and architectural experience, knowledge and skill have – especially since his arrival in the UK – proved invaluable. His rapidly learned understanding of UK design and building practices and his engagement with our redesign and refurbishment project have undoubtedly benefitted the project both from a design point of view, and practically.