Burial spaces within Pretoria have become inert, fenced-off islands – restricting death rituals and their intrinsic value to society, according to Ullrich from the University of Pretoria. This is the basis of his thesis, entitled ‘Life in Death: Addressing Heterotopic Burial Spaces by Reintroducing Burial Rituals into the Inner City of Pretoria’.

Diagnosed with colon disease at the start of his first-year studies, Ullrich adds that this has given him a new appreciation for the ephemerality of life and an approach to design spaces that promote cathartic healing. His project aims to inform a wider audience of the severe impact of urban burial issues within major South African cities.​

Burial rituals and grieving are an intrinsic component of our humanity, and burial spaces have been increasingly removed from South African inner-city districts. The project attempts to reintroduce burial rituals into the inner city of Pretoria with the intervention of a public commemorative burial space.