Here Stood - Visual Interventions in the Public Space

Living in a historical rich city such as Jerusalem, Israel, means that history is all around you wherever you go. It also means that renovations and urban renewals are a constant thing. While preserving the city, we inevitably cover up parts of its past and history, which makes it all the easier to forget.

Here Stood is a visual intervention in the public space that wishes to stop you on your daily route, and present you with a 'looking glass' into the past of the city streets, through architectural icons around the city.

A series of installations in the public space intertwine past and present, to reveal forgotten histories throughout Jerusalem. By doing so, we also survey city-specific issues, and the (shifting) space that deletion, forgetfulness, and preservation play in each one of these issues:

The historic Christian presence in West Jerusalem); the deletion of the Muslim past from public spaces; and the origins of Jewish terror.

King David Hotel, after the Jewish Bombing of the British administrative headquarters for Mandatory Palestine, July 1946 [Origins of Jewish terror]

Text on plaque: "In this place, King David Hotel was renovated after a terrorist bombing".

In the background: South wing of the King David Hotel

Mamilla Cemetery, a historic Muslim cemetery in West Jerusalem, dating back to the 11th century. In 2022, the Museum of Tolerance Jerusalem (MTJ) opened its doors, built on former cemetery grounds that were used since the 1960's as a parking lot due to the inactivity of the cemetery.

[The deletion of the Muslim past from public spaces]

Text on plaque: "In this place, the Museum of Tolerance will be built".

In the background: Construction of the Museum of Tolerance

Talitha Kumi was a girls only German Evangelical Lutheran School in West Jerusalem that taught Jewish, Arab and Armenian girls. After the Israeli Declaration of Independence, the school reopened in the West Bank.

The name "Talitha Kumi" originates from Aramic words which mean "Get up, girl!" a phrase stated by Christ when he resurrected Jairus's daughter.

[The historic Christian presence in West Jerusalem]

Text on plaque: "In this place, stood an orphanage to Arab and Christian girls".

In the background: The historic entrance wall to the school, next to bus stops and shops.