Domus Guide to Jerusalem and its surroundings

Feb 21, 2024

Destroyed, besieged, and repeatedly conquered for at least 3,000 years, Jerusalem is a city disputed by the three major monotheistic religions – Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Cosmopolitan and multiethnic, proclaimed as Israel’s capital in 1980 and home to the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, Jerusalem is also an infinitely rich mine of architectural styles and histories. A mine that goes far beyond its old city, surrounded by ancient walls, and includes Ottoman, Byzantine, Neo-Gothic, Romanesque, as well as Modernist, Brutalist, and contemporary buildings. Noteworthy among them is Moshe Safdie’s spectacular Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum.

Jerusalem is the vibrant academic and cultural center of the country with its five academies of art and design, theaters, film schools, and its Design Week (held annually since 2012). As evidence, we mention two recent buildings: the new headquarters of the national library designed by Herzog & de Meuron, and the new campus of the Bezalel Academy designed by the Japanese studio SANAA. We have thus chosen nine architectural works realized in the 20th and 21st centuries that trace the recent evolutions of the holy city. These are echoed by the most recent architecture by the AAU Anastas studio in nearby Bethlehem: their Wonder Cabinet promises to be an exuberant cultural platform open to all Palestinian artists.