HOUSE OF PAIN
Dream turned into ad man’s nightmare
● The death of film “genius” Keith Rose has evoked a mystery as poignant as his work, and it involves possibly his greatest creation — his own house.
Rose put local advertising on the global stage with his award-winning TV adverts, including the one about the “Beat the Bends” BMW twisting along Chapman’s Peak Drive in Cape Town.
His body was found earlier this month beside that same road, ending a brilliant career in an apparent suicide.
Though his adverts won world acclaim, few know that Rose spent more than 20 years conceiving and building an extraordinary forest estate on the slopes of Table Mountain, called Blackwood Lodge.
But the house cost so much, and is so unusual, that it landed Rose in financial trouble, possibly contributing to his downward spiral in the months before his death, according to some who knew him.
Speculation around his death continued this week, even as his friends and family flocked to pay their respects at memorial services in Cape Town and Johannesburg. The Sunday Times has established that:
● Blackwood Lodge went on auction in June with a reserve price of R45m. It did not sell, and
● The same month, a R15m bond was registered against the property with Sandton credit provider Charomix.
Rose was heartbroken at having to sell the home, which he bought in 1997 for R550,000, transforming it from a bungalow into a 3,000m² wonderland.
A crowdfunding campaign has been launched to support his immediate family.
Property sources said whatever financial troubles might exist would almost certainly vanish if the right buyer was found for Blackwood Lodge.
Its features include a maze of forest paths and zip-lines between the house and pool; a massive koi pond surrounding much of the house, with underwater viewing panels; an open-plan lounge with a 2,500l tropical fish tank room divider; a front wall made from 680 tons of hand-carved Table Mountain sandstone; a subterranean wine cellar with space for 1,800 bottles; a gymnasium; entertainment areas; and a 58-jet Jacuzzi.
Most of the rooms are decorated with artworks and one-off design features, with Rose the driving force behind it all.
“It was never quite complete because he could always find something to tweak,” said blacksmith and artist Luke Atkinson, who worked with Rose on the property for years.
“It had to be absolutely perfect. To me the guy was an absolute genius and an amazing artist. I don’t think people fully understood how good he was in everything.
“Before he even had kids we used to run around that property. We would be ducking behind trees and he would be saying: ‘You can foefie slide from here, let’s have a bridge here, let’s do a slide there.’ He was so young at heart. For me it is just such a tragic thing.”
Property sources said Rose overcapitalised the property to the tune of many millions but didn’t care because he considered the house a passion project. “That was his life, it was his baby,” said one source with knowledge of the property.
Two independent sources said Rose, who won a slew of international awards for his work in advertising, was forced to use the house as collateral for a loan, possibly due to a failed business venture. The mystery was that the loan was only a fraction of the value of the house.
“He did owe someone money — he used the property as collateral. But the property is worth three times the amount of the loan. He was just finishing the interest portion of the loan,” the source said.
“Maybe it is easy for us to say: ‘Well, you just get rid of the house and start again,’ ” said another close friend, who wished to remain anonymous.
“But it is very different to the average person who just sees it rationally. Whatever pressure he was feeling, it was insurmountable.”
A complicating factor may have been difficulties in selling the house due to its high price and the scarcity of foreign buyers due to land expropriation jitters.
“Nobody can ever really understand why people go to these lengths,” the friend said. “We all sit with our theories. If we knew the answer to any of those things we would obviously have been able to help him deal with those things.”
Rawson Properties, which is marketing the house, declined to comment. Credit provider Charomix could not be reached for comment. Police spokesperson Capt Frederick van Wyk said an inquest docket has been opened.
The guy was an absolute genius. I don’t think people fully understood how good he was in everything Luke Atkinson Blacksmith and artist