A debate on the top-down approach to architectural interventions in conflicted historic cities: Jerusalem's Museum of tolerance
Date
2016-11-04
Authors
Basarir, Hacer
Saifi, Yara
Hoskara, Sebnem Önal
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Locke Science Publishing Company
Abstract
The focus of this paper is the extravagant architectural works designed and built in conflicted
historic cities, where continuity with the physical environment and social and political realities
is critical. The paper will discuss the decision-making process at both the planning and urbandesign
level and the architectural-design level. For this purpose, the paper will critically
evaluate an attempt to intervene architecturally in the conflict zone of the historic walled city of
Jerusalem, focusing on Frank Gehry’s design proposal for the Museum of Tolerance Jerusalem
(MOTJ) and the contradictory symbolic meanings this kind of architecture creates in relation to
conflict. The MOTJ project, which has followed a top-down decision-making process since its
conception and whose goal is to contribute to peace in Jerusalem, is a helpful example for
understanding the relationship between the trilogy of conflict, historic cities, and architectural
intervention. The paper concludes that architectural interventions can successfully contribute
to conflicted historic sites figuratively and literally only if they are truthful to the empirical
reality of the context and based on real and common grounds recognized by all parties involved
throughout the process.