Jerusalem Design Week 2019Thu | Jun 20 | 4:00PM

East and West can never meet, said Mark Twain, but is that so?

In Western eyes, the East is always foreign and the odd. However, in a second glance, it’s far more than that. It’s the direction where the sun rises – the absolute one. This perception brings the philosophical, ideological, and cultural aspects, challenging and providing an exciting alternative to the West.

So it can be put as something that lies next to our point of view, hence not as distant as it seems. Being held a city that itself bridges over many contrasts, the Design Week in Jerusalem 2019 will deal with the sensitive issue of the East, by looking over the East from a Western point of view, disregarding any cultural shifts and political quarrels.

Moreover, the East will be presented as a term, as a direction, a fixed reference point, as a future rather than folklore or archaism. Series of exhibitions, projects, and displays will present this concept.

After re-evaluating the idea of the East, we’ll deal with the question: what can we see looking to the East and who owns it?

The opening night will consist of numerous events and shows:

Hansen House will host events to honor the beginning of the Design Week: Dancers, DJ, and Hip-Hop artists from Jerusalem to perform on a special pavilion that will be set up in the yard.

Club All exhibition space will be shifted into a Chinese night club with performers, live musical set and bar.

Luxurious beauty saloon for pampering and greetings will offer manicure, tattoo artists’ services, hair designers, and more, managed by a group of designers and artists.

Alumni and lecturers from the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design will turn the terraces of the Hansen House into a “Sunrises market” and will lay their performances and culinary as the most precious merchandise.

An artistic dialogue between creators will take place, and through an activity where a drone will create paintings in the sky in real time and more.

As every year, a surprise performance will conclude the evening.

While visiting the exhibitions and displays throughout the week, the guests will enjoy food and drinks area operated by Pizza Flora, Ofaimme farm cafe, the “Dir” bar, and visit “Asufa” the Pop-up shop of Israeli Design.

Jerusalem Design Week, seven days of events and exhibits, is organized by the Design Center of Jerusalem. The event will host 150 designers from all around the world who will showcase their work in more than 40 exhibits, projects, and displays. There will also be film screenings, lectures, meeting, workshops, and lots of other inspiring activities.

The theme this year – “East.”

Renewed Hansen House:

The place was re-tailored by a group of the finest architects for creating a new wandering experience for the Design Week. The result: “90 degrees” – a diagonal scaffolding system that is ascending from West to east, creating a unique observation terrace at the roof of the Hansen House, facing East. The entry to the house – from a diagonal staircase at the front of the building. The renewed constructions stretch to the patio with a unique staircase leading to the same terrace as well.

Additionally, there’s an exhibition space created on the eastern part of the house, enabling presenting works indoors/outdoors, screenings, and more. All these innovations create unique perspectives where ancient stone meets industrial steel, and the East is always above it all.

Perennial projects of the Design Week in the new edition:

• A special pavilion will be set at the yard of the Hansen House as part of the perennial program “Design Arena” this year. It operates as a sun-clock – “East to the Sun.” The architects Daniel Zarhi and Lilach Shtiat and the performance artist Dafna Kron are the creators of the pavilion. The temporary construction will be a dynamic space that changes throughout the day and the week. It’ll be the place where events, displays, and multimedia shows will be performed with the purpose to break the dichotomous perception of East vs. West. DJ Ramzy and hip-hop artists Saz, Muzi Raps, Raed Bassam, Adnan Ahmad will perform on opening night along with a dancing show of the artists Shira Aviatar and Aviatar Said.
• “Trans-East” – the central exhibition of the Design Week and Hansen House curated by Tal Erez and Ana Safran. It’ll discuss the defining influences of the East on the West and vice versa, as well as the place of the Middle East in this reality and the circularity of planet Earth. It includes 25 new and existing projects from Israel and abroad, created by designers from Turkey, England, Belgium, and others, as well of 2 Japanese designers as part of the cooperation with Design Art Tokyo.

Plus, the “International Team Program” will introduce four new projects. The program takes place for the third year in a row – the flagship activity of the Design Week. Its purpose is to connect local and international designers. This year there are participants from Australia, England, the USA, and the Netherlands.

• The annual program for small businesses led by Daniel Nachmias and Turck Nasser will present a new edition of the “Matchmaker.” This year the project connects eight young and veteran artists and artisans from East Jerusalem, Hevron, and Bethlehem. Architects, Industrial Designer, Artist, Graphic Designer, and Textile designer work with glass-blower, embroidery, builder of ancient musical instruments, bamboo expert and others.
• The exhibition “Camels flying in the air” is curated by Gilad Raich and Hadas Zemer Ben-Ari. It turns the attic of Hansen House into a space of hybrid reality where East and West regularly produce each other.
• Arie Alhanani designed the imaginary “Flying Camel” symbol for the “Close East Fair” established in Tel-Aviv at 1932.  
• The “flying camel” serves as a starting point for an exhibition of interactive works that follow that process of the local Design before it became substantiated.
• Additionally, a Symposium with the participation of academics specializing in Middle East Studies will take place as part of the event.

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