Jonathan Ben David of the Israel Institute of Technology has created a thesis project titled “Terra Nullius” which dwells on the identities and conceptual restraints dividing people in the Middle East. Suggesting alternative concepts, frames of mind, and mediums for which different social groups can gather upon, the thesis takes place off the coast of Jaffa, once an epicenter of Palestinian urbanism, where a new state is formed as an act of protest by Jews and Palestinians longing for co-existence.
As media coverage of the state grows, the temporary settlement grows into a micro-station of its own, making use of the influence of the media in the Middle East to broadcast new ideas, thoughts, and suggestions for achieving long-lasting peace in the region and around the world. The newborn state is not based on religious faith or national identity, but on an effort to provide and maintain a solution to various common issues across the Middle East, including water shortages and armed conflicts.
The thesis features an open-air museum filled with artworks which inspire people with new ideas and values, and built spaces necessary for the establishment of a legitimate state. A media center is located at the heart of the state, in order to produce and spread ideas created in the various audiences. A seaside promenade physically connects the area with Tel Aviv, while an international transportation hub re-connects Jaffa with the larger region which it disconnected from after the 1948 war.
Throughout the project, Jonathan was assisted by tutor Shmaya Zarfatti.
