Under Cerulean Skies (2006- ) 

An ongoing project in development. 

 

Between 2006- 2009 the transformation of the Villa Said in Jerusalem is documented on video and stills. The Palestinian literary theorist Edward Said was born in Jerusalem in 1935 and spent several years of his childhood here in the house built by his Uncle and Aunt. Later, the house was occupied by the Austrian-Jewish religious philosopher Michael Buber. Although the two worked in different fields, they were united by their intellectual approach and their vision for the city: to find a way to live together in open dialogue. And yet from the roof of Villa Said, caught on film,
one can clearly see the then brand-new Separation Barrier, marking an end to dialogue.

 

The cameras that capture the renovation of the house also reveal a construction site filled with traces of improvised everyday life of the Palestinian construction workers, who barred from returning to their homes in the Palestinian Occupied Territories, reside there until it is finally converted into a luxury residential complex for wealthy Jewish owners.

 

A series of still photographs titled Under Cerulean Skies has been exhibited as part of Speaking in Someone Else's Language (2023) in MOM Artspace in Hamburg. In 2026 the project will be developed in preparation for production in 2027/8. 

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You can find out more about the vision for the projects - here