Shaha Raphael

Project Location
Beirut, Lebanon

Topic
Urban Regeneration
Neighbourhood

Program
Ephemeral - Cultural & Social
Installation

Terre d'origine

Can fostering a relationship between the people and their geology be achieved by developing tools to manipulate earth at the scale of the landscape? Using a cut/fill operation, we can subtract from the earth on site in order to inhabit it and build it up with the excavated material

‘I’ve found that the only thing that brings me peace is working with my hands, Remaining in motion, not only to preserve, but to process. You are at once reminiscing and looking forward.’ Kneading, digging, cutting, mixing, compressing, raking, the dough, the earth. 'Earth Bound – Terre d’Origine' considers the beq’aa valley in Lebanon, proposing to reconnect the people of the area of the Bekaa through secular means, by identifying the fabric of the land itself as the unifying feature to be rediscovered. The project suggests a hyperlocal approach to material providence, learning from local traditions, it looks at innovative methods of clay forming and earthworks on site. It is an attempt at blurring the boundary between the urban and geological fabric, suggesting that the people might be able to rethink their place within the country at a time of turmoil by understanding their place in the landscape.