Michael Sathorar

Hi, I’m Michael. I’ve spent 14 years designing luxury homes, including six years at SAOTA on private villas in Miami, Los Angeles, New York and Dubai, followed by a role as Lead Designer on villas in Saint-Tropez. I hold a Master of Architecture from the University of Cape Town and I’m Revit certified. I use Revit every day, so I teach it the way it’s used in practice, not the way a textbook lays it out.

What I teach:

Revit, from your first wall to a full drawing set: modelling, families, views, sheets, schedules, and keeping plans, sections and elevations in sync
Architectural design: layouts, space planning, how a house works for the people living in it, and how to develop a concept into clear drawings
Portfolio reviews: honest, specific feedback on project selection, layout and presentation, whether you’re applying to university, a master’s programme or your first job
Visualisation: setting up your model and rendering it in D5 or Lumion

How lessons work:
Lessons are online, one to one, with screen sharing. Before we start, I ask what you want to achieve and where you are now, then shape each session around that. Where possible, we work on your own project, so you’re building something useful while you learn. I explain the reasoning behind each step, show it, then have you do it while I guide you. You leave each lesson with notes and a short task to practise before the next one.

Portfolio critiques:
Send me your portfolio before the session. We’ll go through it page by page, the way a design director at a practice would read it, and I’ll tell you what to keep, what to cut and what to rework so your strongest work leads.

Who it suits:
Architecture students, graduates, designers moving to Revit from AutoCAD or SketchUp, and anyone preparing a portfolio for an application or interview.

Tell me where you are and where you want to get to, and I’ll build the lessons from there.

Michael