The project tells the story of a shoreline. A territory of exchange between land and sea, between people and nature. This shoreline lies along the industrial area of Hout Bay Harbour, a short distance from Cape Town, and the fishing community of Hangberg who have inhabited the slopes of this landscape for generations.
The foundational role that stories have in connecting our experience of the world to the spaces we build, the cultures we inhabit and the places we dwell within is explored. The sharing and telling of stories instil a sense of wonder capable of repairing broken systems, decaying spaces and forgotten relationships.

Hout Bay’s dominant story has produced socio-spatial narratives which have depleted the natural environment and destroyed the ability of the shoreline to act as a territory of exchange. This has resulted in the loss of livelihoods in the fishing community of Hangberg and an urban condition that forms a barrier between land and sea.

In response to these conditions, the site is reinterpreted not as an industrial wasteland, but a dynamic tidal territory. Extending from the fishing village, through the industrial barriers and into the sea, a lifeline is created, reconnecting and reawakening dormant regenerative social and ecological systems. An aquaculture farm and shoreline remediation park reconnect the Hangberg community with the harbour and shoreline through spatial, economic and social strategies.

As the potential of the shoreline is revealed, forgotten stories are retold, generational conflicts and scars are healed. As we co-create the shoreline as a space for people and nature, our role as custodians over the places we inhabit becomes undeniable. The sea is a source of life, if we take care of it, it will take care of us. The Shorehouse is a reminder that we all play a part in a vast, wild and wonderfully alive story.