People & Ruins (Studio): Remapping Demolished Spaces & Narratives

How do Palestinians revive and rebuild their identities and remain resilient around the physical remains of their demolished and displaced heritage? This course is a multi-disciplinary studio that integrates digitization and visualization with political, historical, and planning analysis to explore contested spaces, uncover hidden histories, restore lost heritage, spatialize oral histories, and visualize the narratives and practices of Palestinian communities facing ongoing dispossession. The studio employs digital methods, mapping, filmmaking, and visual arts to generate geospatial data and conduct qualitative analysis of texts, plans, legislation, perceptions, oral histories, archives, and visual materials. We will engage with theories, studies, and data on restorative, decolonial, and Indigenous justice in urban environments, combining discourse and political analysis with spatial digitization and visualization to reveal the tragedy, resilience, and narratives of Palestinians, with a particular emphasis on Haifa.