Jerusalem. The Palestinian landscape expressed in a vortex of stones, sounds and images

While We Wait is a meditative installation by Bethlehem-based architects Elias & Yousef Anastas about the cultural claim over nature in Palestine.

AAU Anastas has designed a temporary installation in Jerusalem. The stone elements, coming from different part of Palestine, are shaped by both innovative and traditional techniques: they are designed on a computer, cut by robots and hand-niched by local artisans. Arranged in a larger lace-like structure, the elements leave gaps, allowing the viewer to see out while experiencing the Palestinian landscape through sounds and videos. Returning to the very earth from which it was made, it celebrates the symbiotic relationship between nature and architecture.

The installation was exhibited at the Victoria and Albert museum last September and in concrete at Alserkal Avenue in Dubai. While We Wait is now installed permanently in the Cremisan Valley, where a controversial wall is currently being built, threatening the local community and its historical heritage. Calling in action a variegated set of skills, this installation promotes solidarity, contrasting the segregation brought in by the wallThus, the structure will unite the local community by becoming the focus of their non- denominational Friday gatherings in protest of the wall. While We Waittherefore suggests an alternative to the cultural claim over nature.