Engineered Paradises

A Nation of Purgation and Catharsis in

ENGINEERED PARADISES the West Bank

A Thesis by Zarith Pineda, Academic Supervision by Professor Graham Owen, Tulane School of Architecture ‘15

CONTENT 5 7 21 27 47 53 65

I. Statement & Abstract II. Essay III. Annotated Bibliography IV. Case Studies & Analysis V. Program VI. Site Selection, Research & Analysis VII. Design

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"Once, a city was divided in two parts. One part became the Good Half, the other part the Bad Half. The inhabitants of the Bad Half began to flock to the good part of the divided city, rapidly swelling into an urban exodus. If this situation had been allowed to continue forever, the population of the Good Half would have doubled, while the Bad Half would have turned into a ghost town. After all attempts to interrupt this undesirable migration had failed, the authorities of the bad part made desperate and savage use of architecture: they built a wall around the good part of the city, making it completely inaccessible to their subjects. The Wall was a masterpiece."

- Exodus, Rem Koolhaas

ENGINEERED PARADISES

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I. Statement & Abstract II. Essay III. Annotated Bibliography IV. Case Studies &Analysis V. Program VI. Site Selection, Research & Analysis VII. Design

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STATEMENT

The city of Hebron in the Occupied West Bank/ Israel is shared by the nations of Palestine and Israel due to their respective claims of ownership over religious sites and territories. Hebron suffers from a unique condition of complex segregations through invisible and visible dimensions that greatly harm the quality of life of its citizens- an apartheid that creates great tension and distrust among them.

Through the deployment of nationless ‘engineered paradises’ at the urban scale, the thesis aims to create a respite from the complex spacial formalities of life in the West Bank, constructing safe spaces for catharsis and purgation.

ABSTRACT

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Cohabitation in contested territories is extremely difficult, especially when there is an occupying power and an occupied people sharing the same area and have limited access to each other’s exclusive domains. Throughout history, these conditions have been temporal - usually, one of the two powers gains control of the area and the other is exiled or forced to assimilate. In the case of the city of Hebron in the Occupied West Bank/Israel this will never be a reality. Due to its religious importance to Jews, Muslims, and Arabs, Hebron will always be seen by the state of Israel and the nation of Palestine as ‘theirs’, a condition formalized as part of The Protocol Concerning the Redeployment in Hebron of 1997. As a result of the protocol the city was meticulously segregated down to the block and building scale. Currently, 80% of Hebron is Palestinian (H1) while 20% is Israeli (H2). Even though Palestinian Hebron is larger, it is under complete Israeli military control while H2’s only constraint is limited entry to H1. These divisions are extremely complex as there is no wall around the city to differentiate both ‘neighborhood nations.’ Hebron is a complex metropolis of layers assigned by altitude, religious affiliation and military strategy. Hebronites experience various privileges and restrictions depending on their national affiliation, a reality that incubates resentments between both communities. The thesis aims to create nationless spaces, unaffiliated ‘engineered paradises’ deployed at the urban scale, to provide a respite from the toxicity of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

I. Statement & Abstract II. Essay III. Annotated Bibliography IV. Case Studies & Analysis V. Program VI. Site Selection, Research & Analysis VII. Design

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SHARED HISTORY

The Arab-Israeli conflict is mistakenly thought to be a religious dispute between Jews and Muslims. However, this could not be farther from the truth. To more accurately describe the conflict, it will be defined as a nationalist conflict for the purposes of this investigation. Arab nationalism and Zionism comprise dimensions that go beyond faith and include; a shared identity, perspectives on land ownership, ethnicity, and language. The differing perspectives on land ownership within these nationalistic movements have a direct spacial translation and therefore architectural and urban implications. To quote Eyal Weizman, Israeli architect and expert on forensic and occupation architecture, “The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has a clear spatial, role in its unfolding. Architecture was presented as a political issue, and furthermore as the material product of politics itself.”1Architecture has been used as a political weapon in this conflict, its creation and destruction used to promote destructive nationalistic agendas. The Zionist nationalist movement implemented carefully designed, spatially crafted policy to displace the existing Arab populations of Palestine in order to found its Jewish State. The aim of this investigation is to identify the forces behind these decisions and their implications to propose a vehicle for a mediating architectural intervention. The thesis will be concentrated on the bi-national city of Hebron, a metropolis in the heart of the West Bank, that seems to be destined to a future of seemingly interminable tension and cruelty. Through a deployment of ‘engineered paradises’ the thesis seeks the formalization of an unidentified nationalistic movement in the quest of catharsis and purgation from the tensions of life under occupation.

1 Segal, Rafi, Eyal Weizman, and David Tartakover. A Civilian Occupation: The Politics of Israeli Architecture. Tel Aviv: Babel, 2003.

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

The success of these engineered paradises lies in the acknowledgment of historical precedents of mutual collaboration and understanding between both Arab and Jewish cultures. Historically, both parties had held each other in high regard as ‘people of the book.’ In fact, the Muslim calendar begins with Muhammad’s move to Yathrib (Medina) in 622 AD. At the time, Yathrib was a wealthy Arab trading center comprised of mostly Judaic Arab tribes. It was in the hopes of settling feuds among these tribes that the leadership of Yathrib invited the burgeoning prophet to mediate the crisis. Indeed, since the foundation of Islam, Jews and Muslims have esteemed each other. Examples of coexistence and harmony between both peoples are seen repeatedly throughout their respective histories. From the Jewish golden age under the protection of the Umayyad dynasty in Muslim Cordoba, to the refuge from European antisemitism in the Ottoman Empire, there is an immense quantity of shared history and cultural similarities between both peoples. It is only since the arrival of the Zionist

movement to Palestine in the 1919s that this rapport became jeopardized, but within the context of their shared history, this is a relatively modern unprecedented occurrence.

CONFLICT

ENGINEERED PARADISES

Modern Zionism or Jewish Nationalism was born after World War I, after the defeat of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918. Radical nationalism and ideals of self determination were sweeping Europe and resulted in Germany, Hungary, Poland, Italy, Yugoslavia, Romania, Czechoslovakia becoming their own states. Maps were being redrawn and seemingly every European nationalistic movement ended in the formalization of its own state.

Catalyzed by Theodor Herzl’s manifesto, A Jewish State, the modern Zionist movement sought the reunification of all the Jewish peoples in the land of biblical Eretz Ysrael (Transjordan/Palestine at the time). Transjordan/Palestine was part of the Ottoman Empire at the conception of Herzl’s movement. Census figures of the Ottoman Caliphate from 1850 estimate that there were about 350,000 inhabitants in Palestine, 85% were Muslim, 11% Christian, and only 4% were Jewish.2 It is in this context that Zionism began its quest to displace the existing inhabitants of the region in order to transplant European Jews, to the ‘promised land.’

Since the beginning of the first Aliyahs in 1882, or organized waves of Jewish immigration into Palestine, the demographics of the region have been altered through coercion, intimidation and violence. The Faisal-Weizmann Agreement, one of the first documents detailing the Zionist plan for a Jewish state in Palestine, states, “all the necessary measures shall be taken to encourage and stimulate immigration of Jews into Palestine on a large scale, and as quickly as possible to settle Jewish immigrants upon the land through closer settlement and intensive cultivation of the soil.”3 Dr. Chaim Weizmann went on to become the first president of Israel. This almost colonial and imperialist sentiment is summarized eloquently by Moshe Sharett, Israel’s first Foreign Minister, “we have forgotten that we have not come to an empty land to inherit it. But we have come to conquer a country from the people inhabiting it.”4 In order to execute this conquest, the Zionist movement and later Israeli government have used force, coercion, and deception to displace hundreds of thousands of Palestinians creating a lost, nationless diaspora.

2 Tessler, Mark A. A History of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.

Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1994.

3 Laqueur, Walter, and Barry M. Rubin. The Israel-Arab Reader: A Documentary History of the Middle East Conflict. New York: Penguin Books, 2001.

4 Masalha, Nur. The Bible and Zionism, London: Zed Books, 2006.

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Arabs refer to the ‘necessary measures’ carried out by the Zionist movement as Al-Nakba Arabic for ‘the catastrophe’. Beginning with the Israeli victory of the Arab-Israeli War of 1948, Al-Nakba is seen as the Palestinian Exodus where about 750,000 Palestinian Arabs were displaced, roughly 80% of the population. Al-Nakba was the beginning of the precarious Palestinian ‘refugee problem’ forcing neighboring Arab nations to absorb the displaced - a migration that further exaggerated issues of Palestinian identity, inclusion, and acceptance. Al-Nakba also marks the beginning of institutionalized policies discriminating against Arabs in questions of land ownership. Decreed by the First Israeli Government, laws preventing refugees from returning to their homes or claiming property were first enacted.5

Addressing the refugee problem created by Palestinian Exodus, the United Nations created an imaginary border to separate the newly formed state of Israel and Palestinian territories - the Armistice Agreement of 1949.The Armistice Agreement of 1949 was formally respected until the Six Day War of 1967, which resulted in the annexation of Gaza, the Sinai Peninsula, the Golan Heights, some of the West Bank and Jerusalem. Since 1967, the people of the previously mentioned territories have lived under and Israeli military and civilian occupation. For the purposes of this investigation, the occupation, forced land displacement, destruction, re-appropriation of property and infrastructure in these Palestinian territories will be categorized as acts of urbicide. Urbicide is generally defined as the deliberate wrecking or killing of a city.6 In the case of the Occupied Territories, the aim of urbicide was displacement of the existing inhabitants for settlement of Jewish immigrants needed to populate the new Israeli State.

1922 Land Ownership Distribution

2008 Land Ownership Distribution

1922 Population PALESTINIAN JEWISH

2008 Population PALESTINIAN JEWISH

670,000 84,000

Land Ownership Distribution

ENGINEERED PARADISES

5 Human Rights Watch. “Human Rights Watch.” Separate and Unequal. http://www.hrw.org/print/reports/2010/12/19/separate-and-unequal (accessed October 14, 2014).

6 Graham, Stephen. Constructing Urbicide by Bulldozer in the Occupied Territories. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2004.

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One of the most striking acts of urbicide during the Six Day War took place on its last day June 10, 1967.

To commemorate the annexation of East Jerusalem and the West returnMediterranean of Jews to their holiest site, the Wailing Wall, the IsBank Sea raeli army destroyed 135 homes to create a congregational plaza for pilgrims and Israeli government processions. “This resulted in the dramatic expansion of the area facing the Hebron wall from 4 meters to 40 meters in depth - a deep walkway Dead of 120 square meters became the 200,000 meters of the Sea Western Wall Plaza.”7 The residents of the Moroccan Quarter were given two hours notice to collect their property and vacate their homes. Fifteen minutes before the arrival of the bulldozers, an army regiment passed by the residencIsrael es announcing a final warning. The bodies of the residents who refused to leave their homes were later found in the wreckage.8 Major Etna Ben Moshe, the officer in charge of the operation describes its execution:

“Jerusalem Major Teddy Kollek marked on a piece of paper sites that should be demolished in the neighborhood… There was a mosque in the area called Al-Burqa Mosque built on the site where the horse of Prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven. I said, if the horse ascended to sky, why shouldn’t the must ascend too! So I crushed it well, leaving no remains.”8

1948 Land Ownership Distribution

1967 Land Ownership Distribution

1948 Population PALESTINIAN JEWISH

1967 Population PALESTINIAN JEWISH

1,070,000 720,000

1,2 2,3

Land Ownership Distribution

ENGINEERED PARADISES

Today the Western Wall Plaza is a focus of Jewish nationalism. It is a religious site but also the site where new Israeli Defense Force soldiers are sworn in by having their guns blessed. Thus the narrative of a site with established religious significance for Arabs is re-framed as a site of national memory for Israelis. Not only were the residents of the quarter displaced to accomplish this goal, but a significant site of Muslim and world heritage was destroyed.

7 Bakshi, Anita, Urban Form and Memory Discourses: Spatial Practices in Contested Cities, Journal of Urban Design, 2014.

8 8 Abowd, Tom. “The Moroccan Quarter: a history of the present.” Jerusalem Quarterly File 7 (2001): 6-16.

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1922 Land Ownership Distribution

2008 Land Ownership Distribution

1922 Population PALESTINIAN JEWISH

2008 Population PALESTINIAN JEWISH

670,000 84,000

5, 5,

terranean

rranean

OCCUPATION

1948 Land Ownership 1948 Distribution West Land Ownership Bank Distribution WestThe term ‘illegal occupation’ is a controver-

1967 Land Ownership 1967 Distribution Land Ownership Distribution

Bank sial one when discussing the territories annexed by Israel during the Six Day War. As was previously mentioned, this Hebron conflictHebron is a nationalistic one with variances in perspectives on land Dead rights and ownership influenced by a myriad of Sea factors. Dead Occupation in this discussion will be defined by Sea the Article 49 of the Geneva Convention, the international consensus of legality in cases of mass forcible transfers: Israel

IsraelArt. 49. Individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory to the territory of the Occupying Power or to that of any other country, occupied or not, are prohibited, regardless of their motive...

1948

The Occupying Power shall not deport or transPopulation 1948 fer parts of its own civilian population into P A L E Sthe T Iterritory N I A Nit Population occupies.9 PJAELWEI SS THI N I A N JEWISH

1,070,000 720,000 1,070,000 720,000

This is the article the rhetoric points to when questioning the legality of Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Territories. Since 1967, Israel has embarked on a campaign to colonize the West Bank and Gaza, with hopes that satellite settlements would grow to suffocate and expel Arabs from what are internationally accepted to be Palestinian Territories.

1,280,000 2,380,000 1,280,000 2,380,000

Land Ownership Distribution

Early settlements were influenced by an unofficial plan by the Ministerial Committee on Settlements in 1967 by labor minister Yigal Alon. The aim of the plan was to establish a Jewish presence in the West Bank in areas not populated by Palestinians. The original for these settlements was made persuasive by claiming 1922 that they would Land Ownership be necessary to control cities of religious importance in the 1922 Distribution West Bank such as Hebron, Bethlehem, Jericho and NazaLand Ownership reth. This movement was primarilyDistribution influenced by the formation of a religious lobbying group called Gush Emunim in 1974, Hebrew for ‘block of the faithful.’ Gush Emunim’s mission was to pressure the government to expand and increase settlements on the nationalist basis of religious rights to the area. This effort was then formalized by the Israeli cabinet which adopted the Drobbles Plan in 1981 to increase civilian settlement in the occupied West Bank.

5 The rate of growth, expansion and development of these settlements is extremely alarming.

2008 Land Ownership 2008 Distribution Land Ownership Distribution

670,000 84,000 670,000 84,000

2008 Population 2008 PALESTINIAN Population PJAELWEI SS THI N I A N JEWISH

5,120,000 5,610,000 5,120,000 5,610,000

Land Ownership Distribution

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

1922 Population 1922 PALESTINIAN Population PJAELWEI SS THI N I A N JEWISH 9 Bar-Yaacov, Nissim. “Applicability of the Laws of War to Judea and Samaria (The West Bank) and to the Gaza Strip, The.” Isr. L. Rev. 24 (1990): 485.

1967 Population 1967 PALESTINIAN Population PJAELWEI SS THI N I A N JEWISH

Currently the West Bank is divided into three areas to differentiate Israeli settlement territories from Palestinian towns and villages and their respective governing bodies.

This condition was formalized with the second Oslo Accords of 1995 with the division of the West Bank into Areas A, B, C. Area A, makes up roughly three percent of the West Bank and is under full civil control by the Palestinian Authority, entry into this area is technically forbidden to all Israeli citizens. Area B is under ‘joint’ Palestinian and Israeli civil control and makes up 23-25% of the West Bank.

Lastly, Area C is under full Israeli civil and security control and takes up 74% of the West Bank. Understandably, full Israeli control of 74% of the West Bank creates a constant friction in the region.

Control of the West Bank under Oslo Accords

Jenin

Nablus

Jericho

Ramallah Jerusalem Bethlehem

ENGINEERED PARADISES

Hebron

Isralei - declared municipal area to Jerusalem Area A - Palestinian control Area B - Palestinian and Israeli control Areac C - Israeli control

Control of the West Bank under Oslo Accords

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Segregated Road System, Images by Visualizing Palestine,

ENGINEERED PARADISES

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Settlements in the West Bank enjoy a myriad of privileges financed by the state of Israel, which often offers discrete incentives for relocations to the area. Settlements have subsidized housing, education, roads, water, electricity and health care facilities and to ensure the safety of the inhabitants and the success of the state’s investment.

Segregated Bus System, Images by Visualizing Palestine,

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To keep Palestinians at comfortable distance from settlers, the government has implemented a series of segregation measures. Israeli settlements have a very distinct architectural typology designed for three assets: greater tactical strength, self-protection, and a wider view. Formed around concentric circles, they are usually on higher ground as to, “reinforce the strength already provided by nature.�10 Their urban layout follows topographical lines around the mountain summits to maximize their view of the Palestinian villages below.

Settlement, Image by Reuters

The inward oriented gaze protects the soft cores of the settlements, and the outward oriented one surveys the landscape around it. With respect to the interior of each building, the guideline [Ministry of Construction and 10 Segal, Rafi, Eyal Weizman, and David Tartakover. A Civilian Occupation: The Politics of Israeli Architecture. Tel Aviv: Babel, 2003.

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

The homes of the outer ring have a clear view of the surrounding landscape. The homes in the inner rings are then positioned accordingly with gaps left between the homes the homes in the outer one, by doing so mostly every home is guaranteed an outward view. 10 This configuration imposes on dwellers axial and lateral visibility oriented outwardly and inwardly:

Housing’s 1984 unofficial guideline for the construction of the settlements] recommends the orientation of the bedrooms towards the distant view. Vision dictated the discipline of design and its methodologies on all scales. 10

ENGINEERED PARADISES

These design decisions are officially taken as security measures to avoid, “terrorist elements operating in an area populated only by an indifferent population or the one that supports the enemy,’ therefore creating, “an area in which there are persons who are likely to observe them and inform the authorities about any suspicious movement,” 10 according to Israeli High Court Justice Alfred Vikton in his verdict supporting the legality of settlements. Much like Jeremy Bentham’s design for the panopticon to deter deviant behavior in prisons, the settlement typology reinforces the already toxic voyeuristic-surveillance of Israeli official on Palestinian civilians. This network of settlements essentially creates a network of panopticons that promote Israeli power and superiority throughout the West Bank.

Settlement construction, while technically illegal, happens throughout the West Bank. It happens with little or no notice and often displaces inhabitants, commerce, and cultural institutions. It could be argued that the “D-9 armored Caterpillar bulldozer is the strategic weapon here,” not machines guns or tanks. “‘With its steel armored plates, bullet proof cabin windows, special blades for concrete demolition and asphalt ripper in the rear’ the D-9 has been deliberately designed to plough through built up Palestinian areas with impunity… urbicide by bulldozer.”11 Settlement construction is influenced by several motives, including incentives by powerful construction and infrastructure lobbies, entities like Gush Emunim or the World Zionist Organization, but most remarkably as a punitive act of retaliation. Most recently this can be seen with the Israeli motion to construct settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem as a response to the kidnapping of three Israeli youths early in the summer of 2014. Israeli economy minister Naftali Bennett has publicly stated, “‘Israel has always responded to the killing of Jews by building more illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.’

Israeli media quoted Bennett as saying that Israel's "ultimate goal" is clear, referring to the Zionist plan to seize all of historic Palestine. Regarding the Israeli decision to confiscate nearly 4,000 dunams of Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank to build a new illegal settlement, he said, “building is the Israeli response to ‘terrorism’”. This toxic policy of building as retaliation, hiding behind an ultimate strategy of complete displacement makes the climate in the Occupied Territories an already tense and violent climate even more tumultuous .

11 Graham, Stephen. Lessons in Urbicide. Constructing Urbicide

by Bulldozer in the Occupied Territories. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2004.

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HEBRON

The hilltop-valley typology of settlements emphasizes the importance of elevation and topography in disputed territories. This same strategy allows for a natural barrier that makes a relatively instinctual separation of Israeli/Palestinian areas. However, these didactic separations are not as straight forward in the controversial city of Hebron. Hebron is the only formally divided city in the West Bank whose control is shared by Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The apportionments of each party are extremely complex - there is no wall between Israeli and Palestinian Hebron forcing settlers and Palestinians into cohabitation in certain parts of the city. Unlike other cities throughout the Occupied Territories, there has never been a concession over total control of Hebron due to its religious importance to both nationalities. Hebron is the second most important city in Judaism as it houses the burial sites of Abraham and Sarah in the Tomb of Machpelah/ al- Ibrahimi Mosque. It was established as the capital of ancient Eretz Ysrael by David and Solomon during the First Temple period. Similarly, Hebron is considered to be one of the Four Holy Cities of Islam also due to it’s connection with Abraham, an equally important figure in its history.

Hebron is home to 250,000 Palestinians and approximately 850 Jewish settlers. The city is divided into two sectors; H1 under the Palestinian Authority and H2 under Israeli jurisdiction. H2 is home to 35,000 Palestinians, the 850 Jewish Settlers, and 1,500 stationed IDF soldiers.

Israeli citizens are forbidden from entering H1, however, this rule is sometimes ignored and there have been several reported incidents of settler violence and vandalism in H1.

Palestinian citizens living in H2 prior to the Redeployment Protocol were permitted to stay in the area however their movement within H2 is heavily restricted. There are streets and zones that H2 Palestinians are strictly forbidden to circulate on.

ENGINEERED PARADISES

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Tomb of the Patriarchs Settlement

H1

H2

H1

H2

H1-H2 Border Palestinians forbidden (pedestrians, cars, shops) Area with limited Palestinian travel Checkpoints

ENGINEERED PARADISES

H2 Movement Restriction Map

Palestinians in H2 are allowed to go into H1 as many of their livelihoods, schools, markets, and institutions are based there. This means that for the Palestinian 35,000 residents of H2, crossing the 17 checkpoints that separate H1 and H2 is a ceaseless occurrence, a bothersome part of everyday life. H2 children are forced to cross checkpoints to go to school, women are forced to cross checkpoints to go to the market, men are forced to cross checkpoints to get to work. These often humiliating border crossings, are a constant reminder of the impotence that comes from being Palestinian in the West Bank. While H2 Palestinian citizens have a special permit that allows them to cross into H1, H1 citizens are forbidden from entering H2. Imagine you are Palestinian and your home was in H2 pre-protocol but your relatives’ homes were in H1. You would be allowed to visit your relatives, yet they would never be able to visit you at home. Your home is completely off limits to your relatives because of where your homes happened to be pre-protocol.

H1 and H2 divisions are particularly intriguing as segregation occurs at the street, city block and building scale levels. The most drastic example of this can be seen in the burial site of Abraham and Sarah known as both Tomb of Machpelah or the al-Ibrahimi Mosque. The site was a mosque until 1994, when Dr. Baruch Goldstein an American-Israeli settler embarked on shooting rampage that killed 29 and injured 125 Muslims. This frightening act of terrorism propelled the Israeli government to divide the

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building to prevent future incidents. Half the site would remain a Palestinian mosque and the other half would be converted into an Israeli Judaic temple. Palestinians are forbidden from entering the Temple and Israelis are forbidden from entering the mosque. The periphery of the building has two military checkpoint to enforce this condition, where you are force to show identification to either the IDF or Palestinian Authority.

Muslim

Jewish

Tomb of the Patriarchs/ Al-Ibrahimi Mosque

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Hebron is the only officially segregated city in the conflict and its unique formal conditions reflect a hyper exaggerated apartheid already visible throughout the Occupied Territories. Unfortunately, this seems to be an interminable condition. Hebron appears to be condemned to a fate of seemingly interminable division and therefore tension.

Due to its religious, commercial, and historic importance to Arab and Israeli nationalism, the only certainty in its future is sustained contention. As Hebron is a microcosm of the divisive spacial policies and witness to the urbicide at various scales, it will be the site of this thesis investigation. While the vehicle of the thesis will concentrate on Hebron, its aim is redeployment throughout the Occupied Territories

PROPOSAL

As has been discussed, the impacts of urbicide are not only physical but psychological. This is true throughout Hebron and the West Bank where their inhabitants are forced to share their ‘nation’ with an ‘other’, who they believe to have illegitimate claim to the land and territory.

Palestinians see the other as the perpetrator of a catastrophe while Israelis see the other as an road block standing on the way of their deserved, promised state. Meanwhile the conflict has caused unquantifiable repercussions for both nationalities and people beyond the Middle East that identify as ‘Arab’ or ‘Jewish’. The destruction and loss from the Arab-Israeli conflict has created a trauma in the zeitgeist that is impossible to delineate. Perhaps the most eloquently descriptive metaphor is rendered by Bogdan Bogdanovic, Mayor of Belgrade when referring to the destruction of the great Balkan cities caused by the regional conflict of the early nineties:

What makes the situation even more monstrous is that the cities involved are beautiful, magnificent cities: Osijek, Vukovar, Zadar, with Mostar and Sarajevo… The strike on Dubrovnik, was intentionally aimed at an object of extraordinary, even symbolic beauty. It was the attack of a madman who throws acid in a beautiful woman's face and promises her a beautiful face in return.12

ENGINEERED PARADISES

Every act of urbicide during the Arab-Israeli conflict deforms the existing face of the its cities, buildings, citizens while inexcusably promising the beautiful face of a new state.

Speculating upon the architectural proposal of this thesis, its focus will be on embracing the sensibilities of loss and memory brought upon by acts of urbicide. The intervention will not aim to ameliorate or solve the conflict, but to provide a respite from it. For the foreseeable future, the destiny of Israel/Palestine will remain contended, this fate being specially true for Hebron. The parti of the architectural intervention will focus on creating nationless spaces. ‘Engineered paradises’ on an urban scale intervention, deployed around Hebron, to create areas of catharsis and purgation from the tensions and formality of life in the West Bank. The proposal seeks to create a third nationalistic movement coming from the identity crisis of both Palestinians and Israelis, that offers an alternative to the nationalities they are forced to conform to. Seemingly paradoxical, these engineered paradises will be ‘nationless’ yet creating a nationality that examines memory and loss, allowing for a respite from the perniciousness of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

12 Rogel, Carole. The breakup of Yugoslavia and the war in Bosnia. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1998.

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

I. Statement & Abstract II. Essay III. Annotated Bibliography IV. Case Studies &Analysis V. Program VI. Site Selection, Research & Analysis VII. Design

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ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY Tessler, Mark A. A History of the Israeli-Palestinian

Conflict. Bloomington: Indiana University

Press, 1994.

A detailed history of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Tessler begins recounting the tale of both nationalities since before their formal conception. Since the time of the Philistines and ancient Eretz Ysrael, a detailed evolution of both people’s identities is shown as a result of political, historical and territorial forces. The book details the rise of modern Zionism and Arab nationalism as reaction to European imperialism and post World War I nationalism. Concluding with the current conflict, the rise of Hamas and radical right-wing Zionism, TesSsler’s accounts are factual and allow the reader to form his own conclusions and postulations about the future and resolution of the conflict.

Segal, Rafi, Eyal Weizman, and David Tartakover.

A Civilian Occupation: The Politics of Israeli

Architecture. Tel Aviv: Babel, 2003.

Originally banned texts and articles of the Israeli submission for the 2002 World Congress of Architecture in Berlin. This collection was controversial for expressing disapproval of Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Seen as anti-Israeli and anti-Zionist, Rafi and Weizmann were extremely critical of the deployment, configuration, and impacts of settlement architecture claiming they were a tool to appease an Israeli middle class discontent with the countries tense climate. The anthology combines documentary clips, diagrams, and images that show the exponential growth of the settlements and the complexity they yield to a future two state solution.

Laqueur, Walter, and Barry M. Rubin. The Israel-Arab

Reader: A Documentary History of the Middle

East Conflict. New York: Penguin Books, 2001.

Gitai, Amos. “”L’architecture Et Ses Références Bibliques.

Le Tabernacle Et Le Temple” – Conversation

Amos Gitai Et Dov Elbaum.” Lecture, Architec

ture En Israël (1ère Séance),Cite De L’architec

ture & Du Patrimoine, Paris, March 03, 2014.

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Anthology of official documents, letters, accords, and postulations documenting the Arab-Israeli conflict. Beginning with the end of the British Mandate, continuing on to Israel’s independence after 1973, and concluding with the document of the Camp David Accord and Madrid Conferences, it is a detailed account of policy on both sides. The Reader is an incredibly valuable collection of primary sources.

Lecture series attended at the Cite de l’architecture et du Patrimoine in Paris. Architect and film director Amos Gitai presented his series of short films analyzing architecture in Israel. Gitai talked about the European Bauhaus pedagogy that influenced the newly designed cities of Israel Especially Tel Aviv ‘the white city’. Other topics included the dimension of memory in space, Especially in contested territories under violent conditions where urbicide occurs frequently. The politics of building and the responsibility of the architect when designing in contested territories were also a common theme throughout the series.

Abujidi, Nurhan. Urbicide in Palestine: spaces of oppres

sion and resilience. Vol. 63. Routledge, 2014.

Nurhan talks about the destruction of the Palestinian cities since the occupation began in 1948. He gives eye witness accounts of destruction, property loss, military abuses and restrictions on growth, development, building and infrastructure in the West Bank. Settlement abuses are also detailed with pictures, interview and primary sources. The book aims to give a factual view of what has occurred in these instances yet Nurhan is sometimes biased by his Arabic origins. Overall, the analysis is thorough and paints a clear picture of the occupied West Bank.

“B’Tselem - The Israeli Information Center for Human

Rights in the Occupied Territories.” B’Tselem.

Accessed September 16, 2014. http://www. btselem.org/.

ENGINEERED PARADISES

B’Tselem is the official non profit organization is Israel that studies the impacts of Israeli settlements in the West Bank as well as civil rights violations. They have a through archive of maps, interviews, studies detailing the quality of life of the inhabitants of the region. Based out of Israel, B’Tselem gives a well balanced, factual account of what is happening in the settlements and how they have been evolving in recent times. Their information is funded by non partisan international organizations and a partnership with the United Nations.

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

I. Statement & Abstract II. Essay III. Annotated Bibliography IV. Case Studies & Analysis V. Program VI. Site Selection, Research & Analysis VII. Design

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VICTOR RAMOS | BYPASS URBANISM | RICE UNIVERSITY | 2008 Ramos proposes an urban scale intervention to mediate the disjointed Palestinian enclaves of the West Bank. Currently the area of "Palestine" is in a process of constant division and separation under complete Israeli military occupation and the expansion of Israeli settlements . Ramos' proposal introduces elegant bridges programed with housing, retail, and transportation infrastructure that 'bypass' the constrictive conditions below to form a nation of 'network' enclaves and connector bridges.

Palestinian Enclaves

Underground Traffic

Housing

Greenway

Exterior Render by Viktor Ramos

Parti Diagrams

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Skin

"By defining various control regimes, the [Oslo] Accords have created a fragmented landscape of isolated Palestinian enclaves and Israeli settlements. The intertwined nature of these fragments makes it impossible to divide the two states easily. By connecting the fragments through a series of under- and overpasses, the border between the two states has shifted vertically." - Viktor Ramos

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Bypass Urbanism In Action,

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Interior Renders by Viktor Ramos

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MAUD PLACE | AA DIPLOMA 5 | 2013 M A U DSANCIAUME S A N C I A| UTHE M ECARAVAN | THE CARAVAN PLACE | AA DIPLOMA 5 | 2013 Sanciaume’s project takes place in a post-apocalyptic Mitrovica, where a series of infrastructural elements inspired Sanciaume’s project takes place in a post-apocalyptic Miby Kosovo’s cultural background are used to bridgeinspired the gap trovica, where a series of infrastructural elements between Albanians Serbians, paying homage to the by Kosovo’s cultural+background are used to bridge the1999 gap Kosovo War. The project features whimsical programmatic between Albanians + Serbians, paying homage to the 1999 elements, such as project a gypsyfeatures palace, awhimsical distillery,programmatic and a bunker Kosovo War. The bar that emphasize and celebrate cultural similarities while elements, such as a gypsy palace, a distillery, and a bunker activating derelict zones in Mitrovica.

Sanciaume calls the bar that emphasize and celebrate cultural similarities while program typologies ‘folies’; craziness.

It is indeed in activating derelict zones in whims, Mitrovica.

Sanciaume calls the the exaggeration of these folies and their programs that the program typologies ‘folies’; whims, craziness. It is indeed in humanity of the different factions brought to the that surface. the exaggeration of these folies andistheir programs the By integrating these icons throughout Mitovica the scheme humanity of the different factions is brought to the surface. paysintegrating deferencethese to theicons warthroughout but also ridicules its the motives ilBy Mitovica scheme lustrating that similarities of the bon vivant Balkan culture pays deference to the war but also ridicules its motives illustrating that similarities of the bon vivant Balkan culture

Section by

by Maud Maud Sanciaume Sanciaume Section

Gypsy Palace

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Distillery

30 30

Bunker Bar

Paths / Icons

Site Diagram by Maud Sanciaume

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Bunker Bar Design by Maud Sanciaume

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Bunker Bar Design by Maud Sanciaume

Distillery Design by Maud Sanciaume

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Gypsy Palace Design by Maud Sanciaume

34

Distillery by Maud Sanciaume

Sanciaume’s diploma is extremely successful in ‘suspending disbelief ’ and transporting the viewer to a post apocalyptic Mitrovica. While her program and proposal are somewhat unconventional, their craft and representation legitimize the project. The whimsical folies are contrasted by the attention to tectonics that create an almost engineered precision in the architectural interventions. The architectural language and representation are almost mechanical, bringing a sense of comfortable familiarity to the suspended disbelief.

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Pasarelle Vignette by Maud Sanciaume

JA KYUNG KIM | OI, YOUR SHADOW IS OVER THE LINE | AA DIPLOMA 5 | 2013 Kim’s project occurs at the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea. Through her programmatic interventions Kim ridicules men’s ‘immature’ attitude over policy and divisions. By redefining the boundaries of this controversial area so extremely, Kim makes a case for feminist agendas as advocates for humane political decisions. The intervention is based around an inflatable beauty parlor/ salon, designed for Korean, from both sides of the divide, to come together. While some might argue that a salon is anti-feminist, femininity and feminism are not mutually exclusive. The comradery found in a beauty parlor is an adept backdrop for dialogue of unity, amelioration, and trust reconstruction. The program also features a market on both sides of the divide and ‘chariots’ that plow and View to Salon Tower, Image by Ja Kyung Kim, Diagram by Author

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Salon Tower

Market South Korea

Market North Korea

36

View from Salon Tower by Ja Kyung Kim,

“Using the landscape, the tower and the market, which is a hybrid program, a new form of Geo-politic is created from the point of view of the Korean women.” - Ja Kying Kim

Markets, Image by Ja Kyung Kim, Lists by Author

South:

North:

Exposition Fashion Cars

Tai Chi Traditional Dress

Industry Technology Parade

Wagons Agriculture Measured Orchestrated

Celebration Sexualization Speed

Fearful Regal Decent Modest Communal

Efficiency Productivity

Folie

Western

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37

Drawing Border: Feminist Imagery (Attention to drawing borders, expands on theme of borders and feminism)

Chariot Elevation, Plans

Chariot Axonometric Drawings

(Assembly)

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Chariot Render/ Diagram (Show critical components)

Chariot Design, Image by Ja Kyung Kim, Diagram by Author

38

Men in the Parlor, Drinking Beer, Getting their hair permed.

Color Scheme: Pastels Suggest Femininity.

Render Style: Collage, Overlaying Orthogonal Drawings and Render.

Juxtaposition of whim and tectonic.

Women shown in more active role, men are shown in a passive (seemingly feminine role).

Beauty Parlor, Image by Ja Kyung Kim, Diagram by Author

Conceptual Images by Ja Kyung Kim, Analysis by Author

Architecture v War

Girl Power

39

Persistence

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Obedience Militancy and Passiveness

THE WAILING WALL | MARC CHAGALL | TEL AVIV MUSEUM OF ART | 1932

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Known as the ‘Quintessential Jewish Artist of the 20th Century,’ Marc Chagall’s work is filled with avant garde painting styles replete with Jewish themes. Embracing his heritage, at a time when it was unacceptable to be Jewish in the art world, Chagall expresses an uninhibited longing for a national legitimacy for his people. ‘The Wailing Wall’ was painted in 1932, sixteen years before the creation of the State of Israel during a trip to Palestine. Confronted with kibbutzim and modernist Zionism, Chagall was filled with pride and exuded this vibrancy in the works from his travels. This specific painting is of utmost importance to the development of my thesis, since it is one of the only documents of the Western Wall Plaza before the creation of Israel. Here we can see the beginning of the ancient Moroccan Quarter which started only four meters away from the Wall and was home to hundreds of families. During the Israeli capture of Jerusalem June of 1967, the victory was commemorated with the destruction of the Moroccan Quarter as a gesture to Jews signaling their return to Jerusalem; a terrible result born from a series of unfortunate events concerning the legitimacy of both parties. I came across this painting at the National Art Museum of Tel Aviv, during the crisis of Operation Protective Edge.

Much like Chagall’s yearning for a nation and the unfortunate consequences of it’s very creation, I was conflicted with nostalgia and anger for the events surrounding my stay in Israel and the Occupied Territories. The inspiration, abstract, question, indeed everything regarding this thesis starts and ends with this painting for me.

40

The Wailing Wall by Marc Chagall

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CARMEL | AMOS GITAI | OPENING SCENE, STILLS | 2009 This is the opening scene of Amos Gitai's 'Carmel'. In it Gitai’s wive Rivaka, reads a poem by his mother Etratia about life and war in Israel. Gitai is thee son of prominent Israeli Bauhaus architect Munio Weinraub who was instrumental in the design of Tel Aviv, Yad Vashem, the Temple at Haifa and approximately 8,000 buildings around Israel.

Like his father, Amos has a Ph.D. in architecture but never practiced. His professional career has centered in film becoming Israel's most influential director. Often dealing with the question of Israeli nationalism and identity, architecture is often a prominent motif in his work. Gitai explores the relationships that people have with space, their memories in it, and the elements that render it memorable - an analysis that is extremely relevant to a discussion about contested territories. These subjects are confronted in Carmel through the use of Gitai’s family’s memorabilia and documents, superimposed on historical reenactments.

This is a poem about people what they think and what they want and what they think they want even though few things on earth really deserve our interest.

It’s a poem about what men do because what they do is more important than what they haven’t done, singing the song of the caravans and the way they taste sand in the scorched airplane

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that crashes whistling like a lament of mourning And lastly, these poems are about war Written on a desk while it is raging without mercy.

-Etratia Gitai, read by Rivka Gitai

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43

ATMOSPHERES | PETER ZUMTHOR | 2003

The most inspiring document in my architectural career has been the transcript of Peter Zumthor’s lecture Atmospheres from 2003. Zumthor’s principles of anatomy and tempo-rarity are extremely appropriate when describing the role of emotions and memory in architecture. Descriptions of the architect as master orchestrator of circulation seducing the visitor with curiosities are powerful and evocative.

Personifications of a building as a human body that can reach out and touch the visitor with skin, organs, bones with temperature, respiration and life, expand on the tactile and physical realities of architecture. By making these metaphors, Zumthor argues for a fourth dimension in architecture - magical realism. The succinct principles outlined in Atmospheres are so simply logical yet so rarely used, that I believe they should be required reading for every architect.

They are master architect’s guide to creating memorable atmospheres in architecture.

Sample Pages from essay “Le Fauteuil”, an analysis of Perter Zumthor’s Atmosphere, by Author, under the supervision of Frédérique Peyrouzere

4

ARCHITeCTeS SeNSIbleS eT PeTeR ZUMTHOR

le fauteuil

le fauteuil

ARCHITeCTeS SeNSIbleS eT PeTeR ZUMTHOR

architecture sensible &

ZUMTHOR ENGINEERED PARADISES

Argument pour une architecture atmosphérique.

ATMOSPHèReS Par Peter Zumthor

I

l y a peu d’architectes, qui, de nos

ce monde m’émeut? Comment puis-je

jours, essayent de comprendre ces

introduire cela dedans mon travail? >>

sensibilités dans leur design pro-

la suite du discours fut une tentative

cess. Dans l’ère des formes expres-

de réponse, un résumé des principes

sives, design paramétrique, frank gehry

qu’il utilise pour essayer de réaliser des

et le burj Khalifa ; l’architecte suisse,

espaces évocateurs.

Peter Zumthor est l’un des seuls promoteurs des sensibilités atmosphériques.

Dans sa conférence Atmosphères en 2003 pour le festival de musique et littérature de east Westphalia-lippe,

ZUMTHOR

Zumthor commence son discours avec

Par: Share Design

ces quelques mots simples : << l’archi-

44

bURj KAlIfA Wikimedia Commons

P

armi toutes ses guides Zumthor identifie deux principes fondamentaux : l’anatomie et la temporalité.

Plus que des principes, ces guides sont des suggestions qui calibrent à nouveau

tecture de qualité pour moi est quand

nos points de vues en interprétant le

le bâtiment m’émeut. qu’est-ce qui dans

rôle de l’architecture et l’architecte. en

5

le fauteuil

8

7

ARCHITeCTURe COMMe UN CORPS

ARCHITeCTURe COMMe UN CORPS

D

ARCHITeCTURe COMMe UN CORPS

ans le cas du Musée juif,

Kadishman. le visiteur est forcé de se

libeskind montre une com-

confronter au massacre des juifs en

préhension totale du secret.

europe. Dans le plafond on trouve des

qu’il transmet au visiteur.

lucarnes qui éclairent légèrement les

Dans l’axe central du bâtiment il y a

vides pour évoquer en un sens l’espoir

six percements qui créent des vides

inaccessible. Métaphore puissante par

qui s’étendent du sous-sol au troisième

l’espace, la seule lumière qui allume cet

étage. Ces percements sont invisibles

espace étant quatre étages au-dessus.

de l’extérieur happés par l’enveloppe du bâtiment. Cependant, à l’intérieur les vides créent une rupture sévère dans la circulation soulignent la absence juif en

CeS PeRCeMeNTS SONT INvISIbleS De l’exTÉRIeUR HAPPÉS PAR l’eNvelOPPe DU bâTIMeNT.

[l’architecture.] le corps même! Un corps qui peut me toucher.

le fauteuil

Allemagne.

l

es percements forment un orchestre de lumière, température et matériels pour produire cet ensemble introspectif et

l

es vides ne sont pas climatisés

impressionnant.

et avec leur matérialité en béton bruit ils marquent les esprits. Sensation déroutant

et nostalgique. le sol est couvert par l’installation Shalekehet, des feuilles qui tombent, de l’artiste Israélien Menashe

SHAleKeHeT

e

n parlant de l’anatomie d’un

Par Menashe Ka-

bâtiment Zumthor utilise une

dishman, Musée

métaphore anthropomorphe

juif à berlin

pendant son discours, <<Ici

on est assis dans cette grange, il y a des rangées de poutrelles, et après elles sont couvertes etc, etc. Ce type de chose a un effet sensuel pour moi. et j’appelle ça le premier et le meilleur secret de l’architecture… Pour moi c’est comme un type d’anatomie. en fait, c’est le vrai sens de la mot <corps>, c’est littéralement comme notre propre corps avec ces anatomies et choses qu’on peut pas voir et la peau qui nous couvre… [l’architecture.] le corps même! Un corps qui peut me toucher.>>

CORPS HUMAINe equisses par leonardo da vinci

Sample Pages from essay “Le Fauteuil”, an analysis of Perter Zumthor’s Atmosphere, by Author, under the supervision of Frédérique Peyrouzere

le fauteuil

9

lA CAlMe eT lA SÉDUCTION

le fauteuil

13

lA CAlMe eT lA SÉDUCTION

l’ARCHI De qUAlITÉ ATMOSPHèRe 3 Par Cynthia Woehrle

Par Peter Zumthor

le calme & la

SÉDUCTION

C’est en réitérant l’introduction d’Atmosphères, l’architecture de qualité, remarquable et impressionnante que l’on arrive à émouvoir.

Il y a aussi l’art plus gentil de la séduction, de permettre les gens à se laisser, se balader...

l

es descriptions des espaces

vides impressionnants dans un bâti-

émotifs de Zumthor étaient

ment labyrinthique... la morale de cette

plutôt sensuelles et calmes.

approche du design architectural est de

le Musée juif à berlin de

ne pas sous-estimer la dimension sen-

libeskind propose l’antithèse de ces

timentale de cet art. l’architecture est

émotions en évoquant la perte de

un art temporel, l’architecte a un temps

foi, la solitude, l’exile, l’incertitude…

limité pour laisser une empreinte. la

Cependant les deux sensations sont

manière la plus durable d’y arriver est

égales et importantes, elles marqueront

de toucher les sentiments, le sensible du

le visiteur, lui gravant des souvenirs

visiteur. C’est en réitérant l’introduction

inoubliables. les sentiments à évoquer

d’Atmosphères, l’architecture de qualité,

sont infinis : la nostalgie de l’enfance

remarquable et impressionnante que

à cause de la texture d’un fauteuil, la

l’on arrive à émouvoir.

remarque de l’absence d’un avec des

45

ENGINEERED PARADISES

HOTel THeRMe vAlS

I. Statement & Abstract II. Essay III. Annotated Bibliography IV. Case Studies & Analysis V. Program VI. Site Selection, Research & Analysis VII. Design

46

REST

The man was tired. Seventy years had chalked lines into his sagging face, giving it the semblance of the many drawn and redrawn political maps of Hebron. All the divisions of walls, prohibited roads, barriers, and checkpoints across the city seemed to be etched into his creased skin. This day was still the same as the last. Politicians had come and gone, political and public safety announcements cycled through different forums, manifestations of violence had advanced with more effective weaponry, but that constant, known feeling of thick helplessness hung in Hebron’s air. The familiar weight bore down on him again this morning.

She woke up tired again this morning. Her lips cracked and dry, she reached for her water glass. The half-empty cup hardly satisfied her morning thirst. The consistent ritual of morning rinse and purge by water gave her little respite from the insatiable thirst. She filled her cup in the kitchen sink and drank deeply through choked breaths. Hebron’s water spilled down her throat, but the familiar, tired thirst remained.

The man stopped for tea from the vendor at the corner. His heart sped and his eyes fluttered open, but his body still shrugged along the cobblestone teeming with empty, resound exhaustion. He walked towards the fence that had divided his experience across years of fitful sleep and groggy mornings.

She bought a juice from the baker’s daughter.

Her hand trembled as she grasped her curled wooden can and slowly shuffled across the sidewalk towards the fence.

A droplet of nectar dripped from her folded chin as she deliberately sucked it down. This was temporal satisfaction, a familiar feeling she knew would soon wax as the aged thirst crept back inside.

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

The man and the woman simultaneously reached the Center, a rounded building with soft glazed edges that wrapped around its unusual shape. They arrived through their respective walkway entrances at the same time. They saw each other from across the open space. She had entered from the east side, he the west. Their glazed eyes stared onto one another, and though they both knew they had never previously met, a flicker of recognizance fluttered across the room. The presence of the other was like the reflection of a familiar mirror, the accumulated weight of tired mornings and unquenched thirst for a different start, staring back across the naturally lit space. The softly cushioned recliners spread themselves out like a constellation around a magnificent fountain in the middle of the space. They measuredly walked towards the center and each other. He carefully lowered himself into the chair while she cupped her hands into the clear water. She drank while he patiently watched. She

walked around the fountain and sat into the deep cushions in a chair near him. She nodded and he smiled, before they both closed their eyes in empathetic rest.

CATHARSIS

He’s always sad. Sometimes when he looks at me, I feel like he doesn’t see me. He sees Her, and then a pained look takes over, forcing him to look away. I feel like they’re always looking at me; Baba, Jidda, and even Muhammad... As if staring at me would bring Her back.

When I was smaller Muhammad would be the one to take care of me. Jidda used to help out a lot, but Muhammad says she’s too old now and I should leave her alone, that if I want something, or can’t reach something, I should call for him. Muhammad is the best, he’s the one that plays with me the most. He even braids my hair, even though I know it makes him sad. One day I heard him whimper as he was brushing through the mess of curls and knots. Through his reflection in the mirror, I could see my brave older brother biting his lip to avoid the tears from falling down his face. I think my hair reminds him of Hers. I can’ be sure from the pictures I’ve seen of Her, the scarf is always covering it, but Jidda tells me that my hair is the same unusual color as hers. It’s the color of a ripe fig and when I’m playing in the sun you can see my dark hair lit up with different shades of violet.

ENGINEERED PARADISES

Muhammad is in school and Jidda is in the kitchen. I have to hide from Jidda’s sight so she doesn’t make me peel string beans for the couscous. I decide to go to the back yard and hide in the leaves of the olive trees. I use the knots to climb up and pull myself up from a branch. I’ve done this lots of times, it doesn’t scare me anymore. When I find the best branch to sit on, I notice that the olives are ripe. There is a really pretty purple one that is just out of my reach. I stand on the branch and stretch out my right arm to get it. But as I pull the olive, the branch falls back, and the olives from the branches above start to fall on my head. I let go of the tree to swat the olives off my face but I lose my balance and begin to fall.

I hear a scream. It’s Baba and then all of a sudden I make a loud thump. I fall on my knee and then on my elbow as I try to brace the fall. Before I know it Baba is over me with a horrified look taking inventory of the scrapes and cuts. This is the closest he’s ever been to me. I had never realized his eyes were so green. He’s asking me questions, but I’m mesmerized by his face. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it so close before. As soon as I tell him I’m fine and he immediately changes his expression. He scolds me for climbing the olive trees. I can’t hide in their leaves anymore. Baba slowly begins to walk away after his rant. He looks back only once to make sure I’ve gotten up and goes back into the house hiding his face.

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My body aches and I just want to cry. Baba tells Muhammad all the time that brave men don’t cry. I want to be brave, but I feel so sad. I start to run, I can run really fast. I beat all the boys from my street in a race a couple of weeks ago. They were mad. I run to the bottom of the hill, and take the road that leads to the Babel-Zawiye market. I run past all the vegetables and the fruit stands and make my way to the square. I’m running around the square looking for the entrance. I can’t remember where It is, I’ve only been There once before. All of a sudden a soldier appears, he says something I don’t understand.

Since I haven’t been to school yet, I haven’t been taught Their language. But seeing one of Them always makes me a little afraid and stand up straight.

All of a sudden the soldier turns pale. It is as if he had seen a ghost, like in the American cartoon shows Muhammad plays on the computer. He grabs my arm and starts to shake it asking questions I don’t understand.

I look straight into his blue eyes and he is startled. He finally tires of repeating whatever it is he was saying and with an almost sad look turns around and walks away. I’m confused, but at least he’s left, and now I think I know where the entrance is.

It’s at the northern end of the square by Zaid’s house. I run towards the hidden entrance. My knees still hurt but I tell myself I just have to be brave for a little bit longer. I walk down the dimly lit stone staircase for a while and when I finally get to the landing I see the big doors. They open before me as if they had been expecting me. I am in awe. I can see the beauty of the caves beyond me. They are so big, and I am so small.

Hearing the water running through the floor beneath me, I already feel comforted. There’s no need to run anymore. I am where I need to be. There are others but it doesn’t matter. No one talks to here. There are no soldiers, no sad Babas, no crying Muhammads. There is just Saba. I walk over to one of the sitting spaces where the floor turns into the cave wall, I climb up until I can see the water flowing beneath floor of the cave. I can hear measured footsteps and the little splashes the water makes when it hits the stone. I don’t have to be brave anymore.

Here, I can cry. I cry, because I wish my Ummi was alive.

I though I was starting to forget. That I was starting to be ‘all right.’ Whatever that means. I had started to forget the woman’s face. Or that’s what I would tell myself, to keep the memories and the nightmares at bay. The unit’s psychologist, a pretty blonde named Tal had diagnosed me with post-traumatic stress disorder and had prescribed therapy sessions at least once a week. As if leaving the unit for a couple of hours every week to talk about my ‘feelings’ would go over well with the others. Of

49

ENGINEERED PARADISES

PURGATION

course not. So I deal with my demons, in the best way I can and pretend Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m fine. Or I could, until I saw that little girl in the market this morning.

I was doing my rounds around downtown H1 patrolling through the market when a little girl bumped into me. She looked frazzled and lost so I bent down to talk to her. But when I saw her face I immediately recognized the womanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. She had her same piercing dark eyes, freckles, and that strange fig colored hair. That terrible violet hue that haunts my nightmares at night. Could it be? Were they able to save the child? After the raid, I had asked anyone that could know the answer to my questions. They all said the same thing. The woman had died, but there was no news of the child she was carrying. I assumed it had passed as well.

I was only eighteen when it happened. I was artillery support for various helicopter missions during the 2009 intifada. Our unit was stationed in Hebron, where our mission was to locate and exterminate crucial Hamas leaders that were thought to be hiding in civilian homes, schools, and mosques throughout the city. During the briefing we were told that it the intel was excellent and the mission would be relatively straightforward. It was believed that a senior Hamas militant, Ahmad Qassem Al-Abadla, had been hiding in a civilian home in downtown Hebron. Qassem had been the mastermind behind the suicide bus bombings in Tel-Aviv, and this was the first reported sighting the IDF had of him in months. We were briefed one last time at 04:00 hours and set off in to the darkness, the mission had to be completed before sundown and the first call to prayer.

We found the home easily and began easing into a position that would minimize the blast radius. In that final moment. A young woman came out onto the roof. She was getting water from the tanks on the roof. I looked back at my commander, and told him there was a civilian. He said that the value of our target outweighed civilian casualties and we were to go forth. I tried to aim as far away from the woman as I could while still targeting the residence and then pulled the trigger.

ENGINEERED PARADISES

I hadnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t noticed the woman was pregnant until she fell back and I saw the outline of her dress drape over her round belly.

I will never forget her. The way her curls framed her face as she lay on the ground. Her despair. The way she grabbed her belly as the helicopter flew away. I had never seen something so horrific. She haunts me everyday. But hopefully my torment will be lessened today.

Today is the day I atone for this grave mistake.

After months of research I have finally been able to locate her husband and after weeks of hesitation and deliberating, I decided to contact him. To my surprise he answered and conceded to meet me. Our meeting at the encounter center

50

is in twenty minutes and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m riddled with nausea and anxiety. I arrive early. As I go up to the appointment counter to receive my room assignment, I barely notice the impressive volumes above me. I try to distract myself from my own meeting by imagining what encounters the moving shadows are having. Are they pleasant? Are they productive?

Upon entering the assigned elevator, number 4, I start to panic. What could I possibly say to this man? I reach level 2 within seconds, step onto the landing of pod 6 to a great surprise. There pod is occupied. I can see a silhouette thought the translucent concrete. It seems I wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have the time to gather my thoughts, I had sought. I take a deep breath, say a quick prayer, and open the door.

ENGINEERED PARADISES

51

I. Statement & Abstract II. Essay III. Annotated Bibliography IV. Case Studies & Analysis V. Program VI. Site Selection, Research & Analysis VII. Design

52

SITE SELECTION The thesis was inspired by the unique conditions of the site, its geography, politics, topography and lines of demarcation. The city of Hebron in the West Bank/Israel, has been divided formally into two jurisdictions as has been previously mentioned. H1 (or Hebron 1) is under Palestinian Authority jurisdiction, while H2 (Hebron 2) is under Israeli Government control.

"Glass" Junction

Former Israeli Military HQ now Palestine Govt. House

Mediterranean Sea

H1

West H2 Bank

1948 Israeli Border Police HQ Land Ownership Distribution

1967 Land Ownership Distribution

Hebron Dead Sea

Hebron City Limits

Israel

Egypt Joint Patrol

1948 Population PALESTINIAN JEWISH

1,070,000 720,000

1967 Population PALESTINIAN JEWISH

1,280,00 2,380,00

Israel/ West Bank

"G Ju

L O C A T I O N : 31°32’00 N 35°05’42 E, West Bank, southern Judean Hills, southwest of Jerusalem.

H1

H2

A L T I T U D E : 3,050 ft, 930 m above sea level A R E A: 74.102 km2 or 28.611 sq mi T O P O G R A P H Y : Mountainous encourages cultivation of fruit trees and vineyards.

1922 Land Ownership Distribution

H1 / H2 Separation and Border

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

H E B R O N : Arabic Al-Khalīl al-Rahmān (“The Beloved of [God] the Merciful” [a reference to Abraham]), Hebrew, Hevron.

2008 Land Ownership Distribution

Former Israeli Military HQ now Palestine Govt. House

H1

Joint Patrol

Former Israeli Military HQ now Palestine Govt. House

Israeli Border Police HQ

H2

Joint Patrol Roads v PA Patrol Roads

Settlements

"Glass" Junction

H2

ENGINEERED PARADISES

H1

"Glass" Junction

Former Israeli Military HQ now Palestine Govt. House

Israeli Border Police HQ

Key Sites

54

The Old City of Hebron (shown bellow), is the center of commerce and culture of the city yet it is mostly located in H2. Even though this area is under full Israeli control; it is home to 35,000 Palestinians 500 Settlers, and 1,500 IDF soldiers. Despite the military presence and restrictions on movement imposed upon them in H2, Palestinians continue to live and work in the Old City. There are 17 checkpoints in H2 passing through them is unavoidable for its Palestinian residents who are subject to routine searches and questioning. As the tensions in Hebron occur mostly within the radius of the Old City, its boundaries will form the urban perimeter of the site. Therefore, the deployment of the engineered paradises will be concentrated in the Old City.

Settlement

H1

Old City of Hebron

55

H2

ENGINEERED PARADISES

H1-H2 Border Tomb of the Patriarchs

Tomb of the Patriarchs Settlement

H1

H1

H2

H2

H1-H2 Border Palestinians forbidden (pedestrians, cars, shops) Area with limited Palestinian travel Checkpoints

H1

H2

H2 Movement Restrictions on Palestinian Citizens (Above), Restrictions by User Group (Below)

ENGINEERED PARADISES

H1

H2

H2

H1

H1-H2 Border Forbidden Entry IDF, Israeli, Palestinian

H1

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H2

H2

OBSERVATIONS: H1

Typical Palestinian H1 Street

H1 Home

H1 Market

H1 Occupation Propaganda

ENGINEERED PARADISES

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OBSERVATIONS: H1

H1 Home Destroyed by IDF Raid

H1 Spice Merchant

ENGINEERED PARADISES

Downtown H!

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OBSERVATIONS: H2

H2 Settlement, Abraham Avinu Quarter

H2 Settlement

H2 Visitorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Center

H2 Religious School Beit Romano

ENGINEERED PARADISES

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OBSERVATIONS: H2

H2 Visitor’s Plaza

H2 Abraham Avinu Synagogue

H2 Street

ENGINEERED PARADISES

H2 Visitor’s Plaza

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OBSERVATIONS: TOMB OF MACHPELAH | AL-IBRA-

Tomb of Machpelah / Al-Ibrahimi Mosque

Tomb of Machpelah

Al-Ibrahimi Mosque

ENGINEERED PARADISES

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OBSERVATIONS: APARTHEID INFRASTRUCTURE

Circulation Restriction Signage

Restriction Signage and Checkpoint

ENGINEERED PARADISES

Typical Checkpoint

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Interior of Checkpoint

Watchtower

IDF Base

Division Fencing, Cameras, Intercoms

ENGINEERED PARADISES

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I. Statement & Abstract II. Essay III. Annotated Bibliography IV. Case Studies &Analysis V. Program VI. Site Selection, Research & Analysis VII. Design

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DESIGN PROPOSAL

The design of the architectural and urban thesis vehicle thus far allow for predictions, inferences and hypothesis of the final proposal and documentation. At this point some important decisions have been made in regards to scope, program and representation. This progress report/ addendum will give insight into the current state of the thesis.

Currently the scope of the urban scale intervention has been narrowed down to downtown Hebron 2. This decision was made after a careful study aimed to represent the spacial impact of urbicide in the city. In order to accomplish this, a form of diagramming was developed to translate these complex concepts into a didactic graphic representation. By assigning the following parameters to the definition of urbicide:

1. Spatial Disintegration 2. Sites of Violence 3. Architecture of Surveillance 4. Sites of Occupation

ENGINEERED PARADISES

and then mapping their location through a method of varying density dimension lengths, a language equating density to tension was formed. Since the areas of tension were most prevalent in the Old City of Hebron in H2, the site will concentrate in the same area.

From the points of most tension, nine adjacent vacant lots were selected to house the ‘engineered paradises.’ These nine sites will house the programs proposed previously; the spaces of catharsis, encounter, and rest. (Please note: the space of purgation was changed to the space of encounter since the last draft of this document was submitted, a narrative depicting the space of encounter is yet to be written.) To provide equal access to both the Palestinian and Israeli user groups, the ‘engineered paradises’ will be connected by an elevated walkway that overlooks the sites of urbicide previously identified. By removing itself from the ground conditions and allowing uninterrupted access to the architectural interventions the walkway becomes not only an important infrastructural element for the city but also a monument. Throughout the path of the walkway there will be key moments of détente that allow for observation and introspection.

The combination of the elevated walkway and the engineered paradises results in the spatial manifestation of a new nation. An alternative choice that creates a separate reality from the chaotic conditions of Hebron’s existing conditions, to spaces that allow for safe dignified release , rest and encounter.

MEASURING URBICIDE

Sites of Occupation

Architecture of Surveillance

Sites of Violence

ENGINEERED PARADISES

Spatial Disintegration

Parameters

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GROUND CONDITIONS

H1 + Palestinian Points of Interest H1 + Palestinian Points of Interest

H2 + H2Israeli Points of Interest + Israeli Points of Interest

WALKWAY CONNECTIVITY CITY SCALE

Points of Interest

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Combined ofUserInterest Walkway / PointsPoints of Interest All Groups

GROUND CONDITIONS

H1 + Palestinian Points of Interest

Palestinian User Group Palestinian User Group

IsraeliIsraeli User Group User Group

H2 + Israeli Points of Interest

ENGINEERED PARADISES

Military User Group Military User Group

City Condition

Walkway / Points of Interest All User Groups

User Group / Circulation Limitations USER GROUP / CIRCULATION LIMITATIONS

WALKWAY CONNECTIVITY CIT

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GROUND CONDITIONS

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

All User Groups

ENGINEERED PARADISES

GROUND CONDITIONS: SPATIAL DISINTEGRATION

Ground Conditions Inspiring the Walkway: Spatial Disintegration

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PROPOSAL: THE WALKWAY

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Al-Shahoda St, Walkway Rendering

ENGINEERED PARADISES

PROPOSAL: ENGINEERED PARADISES, THE NATION, (WALKWAY + ARCHITECTURE)

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

ENGINEERED PARADISES: CATHARSIS

Parti Collage

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‫برج املراقبة‬

‫צפה‬ ֶ ‫ִמ‬

CONTROL IMPOSITION

THE WATCHTOWER

ENGINEERED PARADISES

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Plan

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Section

ENGINEERED PARADISES

Catharsis Chamber

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Model Image

ENGINEERED PARADISES

ENGINEERED PARADISES: ENCOUNTER

Parti Collage

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‫نقطة تفتيش‬

RESTRICTION DETENTE

THE CHECKPOINT

‫מחסום‬

ENGINEERED PARADISES

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Plan

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Section

ENGINEERED PARADISES

Encounter Pods

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Model Image

ENGINEERED PARADISES

ENGINEERED PARADISES: REST

Parti Collage

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‫الرصد‬

‫מחסום‬

PANORAMIC SURVEILLANCE

THE OBSERVATION POINT

ENGINEERED PARADISES

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Plan

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Section

ENGINEERED PARADISES

Ramp Sequence

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

Model Image

ENGINEERED PARADISES

EXHIBITION: OGDEN MUSEUM OF SOUTHERN ART MAY 8-18 2015

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

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ENGINEERED PARADISES

I. Statement & Abstract II. Essay III. Annotated Bibliography IV. Case Studies &Analysis V. Program VI. Site Selection, Research & Analysis VII. Design

http://www.zarithpineda.com/#!engineered-paradises/cetn All images or diagrams not sourced were taken or created by the Author.

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