City Living Resident Spotlight—Isidore

“For much of his life, Isidore worked as a successful and prolific architect in South Africa. In 1961, he designed and built a house for his family in Cape Town and there he stayed for almost four decades. Then, his daughter moved to Melbourne and he found himself spending more and more time on aeroplanes. So, in 2005, at the age of 75, Isidore decided to move too.

When Isidore settled in Melbourne, it didn’t take him long to decide where to live. When he came across the apartments Neometro was building on Wynnstay Road in Prahran, he recalls he saw the plan and said, “That’s it.”

“There’s not much room left in Isidore’s one-bedroom apartment—every wall is consumed by art, artefacts and photos. There are textiles and beads, trinkets and tchotchkes, and each one has a story. The concrete walls of the apartment suit Isidore’s approach to decoration; their cool grey welcomes whatever is placed up against it. His collections have weathered a little from sunlight and time, but the warm tones and colours feel in line with the man himself.

In the centre of the living room, two tan leather Poul Kjærholm PK22 chairs—the epitome of Danish modern—reflect something of Isidore’s own sensibility: friendly, organic and egalitarian. The room they sit in recalls Alexander Girard’s folk-art-inflected design or the Eames’ wide-ranging inspirations—be they thimbles and spinning tops or toy trains and rockets. Here, there are swords and walking canes, medieval chainmail, helmets and Picasso prints. Photos of Isidore’s children and grandchildren dot the walls.”
— City Living: Neometro Residents and Works (Uro Publications, 2025)

Since 1985, Neometro has been building design-focused homes that enhance everyday urban living. In the new book City Living, the long-standing residents of some of these buildings open their doors to readers, to share their stories of life in high density. Featuring richly detailed photography of each resident’s home, City Living gives readers an intimate insight into a mode of dwelling that, handled thoughtfully, is fast becoming the preference of many in Australia.

Click here to read more about the book, or to purchase your copy now.