אדריכלות ישראלית - גיליון 126

The Grace of Ageing אדריכלות ישראלית Architecture of Israel # 126 August 2021 94 | | "Thou shall glorify the old", "None are as wise as the experienced", "The young have nicer eyes, but old men can see better", are only few of many sayings preaching honour to the old, and not necessarily out of compassion. Not without reason Judaism, Islam, Buddhism and many other religions grant a higher status to ageing than to any other commandment. Thought not practiced in our modern society, in the past the old were never made to feel unnecessary. According to Islam, honouring the old (Hadith) is the most important commandment, immediately after belief in Allah. Buddhists believe that "We are what we have thought about", and refers to the old with "Who knows where we came from and where we go "(Omar Khayam). The question is, if this is the prevailing approach, why does the world of planning relate to old buildings as if they were worthless, and make every effort to replace them with huge residential towers that have neither soul nor any architectural value. To this question, as with many social ones, there are numerous answers, and most paradoxically the perception of the new as a desirable entity as mistakenly adopted by Zionism, misunderstanding the L'Internationale - the French Leftist Anthem written in 1871 by Eugène Edine Pottie and wrongly translated by Israel poet Avraham Shelonski, stating that everything related to the past must be confiscated and forgotten! This rather militant declaration contributed much to the hostile perception that anything built in the past has no relation to us, thereby legitimising the massive demolition of Arab villages, British construction, Templar colonies, and later on, even the demolition of our own architectural heritage. heritage preservation the grace of ageing Dr. Ami Ran This comes at the cost of losing one of the most important social values in architecture - the meaning of place - and with it, the sense of belonging. This was widely expressed in the massive building of residential blocks during the 50s and 60s, and the massive demolition of historical tissue by the Brutalist Style concrete mega structures of the 70s. In this framework, architectural heritage is not regarded as important by local authorities nor by the National Planning Authority. Both of them promote Demolish & Build projects all over the country, at the expense of losing the very few old buildings left. And no less disastrous is the destruction of historic urban tissue under the title 'Urban Renewal'. For the State of Israel, this constitutes an extremely problematic situation, for geographically our feet are in the Middle East, yet our heads are in the west, or any other corners of the globe offering a "better life". This dilemma is even more severe in the Israeli Arab sector, where conservation is almost impossible due to the fact that great parts of their built environment have been ruined or expropriated due to political circumstances. If conservation does appear here and there, it is loaded with anger, and takes the form of a museum -like, symbolic conservation expressing their resistance to the occupation. No less problematic is the fact that Arab society has undergone a social evolution where Israeli luxury building is seen as a desirable living model. Returning to the allegory of man's gracefully ageing, conservation today takes the form of 'face lifting’ rather than a slow evolutionary ageing. Lip service is paid in the form of frozen memories of events occurring in the place over the years. Such conservation actually eliminates the possibility of urban tissue to serve as a stable basis for evolving construction; without disconnecting the sequential heritage that survives the test of time. In other words, the only way to remember where we came from, and to know where we are heading to. And when this is eliminated by the typical Urban Renewal projects loaded with soul- less residential towers, the place loses its uniqueness and all cities look alike. Equally true for all cities of the western world. Needless to say, historical cities that survive efforts to eliminate their character become architectural attractions, and as a result, serve as magnets for renewing populations. Moreover, historical events documented in the structure serve as inspiration for rich interior design, thus suiting the very definition of sustainability . ה ָ ימ ִ ר ְ ח ַ סוֹד נ ְּ י ַ י ה ֵ ד ֲ ן ע ׁ ָ ש ָ ם י ָ עוֹל ל ֹ ע ָ ק ה ֹ ר ְ פ ִ פוּף נ ָּ ב כ ַּ ג ִ מ ה ָ ימ ִ ק ָ ז נ ֶ נוּ א ֵ מ ָ ת עוֹל ֶ א מוֹל, ְּ ת ִ לוּם מ ְּ לֹא כ ל. ֹ ּ כ ַ ר – ה ָ ח ָ מ