Exhibition | The House Question

The School of Architecture and the Department of Photography at Bezalel, invites to the exhibition "The House Question", an Exhibition of Works from the Tokyo Studio and Seminar 2023–2024.

The House Question is the title of a joint course between the School of Architecture and the Department of Photography at Bezalel Academy, held in Japan during the summers of 2023 and 2024. Fifty participants settled in Tokyo for a 30-day period to study, document, examine, analyze, and interpret the characteristics of the Japanese house, primarily through a selection of approximately 100 vacant houses. These were chosen from Japan’s vast inventory of about nine million abandoned houses. 

The conceptual foundation of the course was built upon the tension between the Japanese house and the empty house. The Japanese house has never been stronger. Throughout the twentieth century, it has been a focal point for experimentation, exploring new domestic lifestyles, ways of living, modes of individual expression, and social structures. It has served as a platform for architectural innovation in materials and forms, shaping proposals on how to inhabit space and relate to the environment. Nearly every modern and contemporary Japanese architect has developed their most significant ideas through residential design. Even today, the Japanese house continues to attract widespread attention.

In contrast, the empty Japanese house appears weaker than ever. Houses are abandoned due to demographic shifts such as low birth rates and an aging population. They struggle to compete with urban development projects, real estate speculation, and changing lifestyle preferences. Legal and economic constraints further complicate their reuse, as sustainability efforts remain weak and demolition costs remain high. The empty house in Japan is one of the most striking expressions of the post-growth era, with nearly nine million such examples across the country. Within this context, the course explored the intersection of architecture, photography, and artistic research, bridging pessimism with possibility. 

The Japanese house and the empty house together offer a lens through which to examine contemporary Japanese society. They provide cultural and conceptual depth while also exposing fundamental tensions. They challenge conventional assumptions about the house, prompting a reconsideration of its significance and role. The extreme context in which this question is posed suggests that the answers, when formulated, may lead to unexpected insights.

Exhibiting: Yuval Avraham, Mohamed Bakri, Yael Benayoun, May Chen, Noga Davis, Polina Danielova, Ofir Drory, Idan Dery, Naomi Van Essen, Efrat Freedman, May Goldestain, Yoed Granovski, Naftali Heilbron, Rawan Joulani, Alma Kishon, Shelly Kauschansky, Shai Keselbrener, Tamar Levy, Noa Liss, Victoria Liberman, Amit Landau, Daniel Michaeli, Nicole Miller, Yuval Mimran, Yael Mandelblat, Maya Ozri, Eliana Pinchuck, Omer Shekef, Neta Terem, Bar Tiran, Lior Yeger, Stav Tsur, Noa Rothenstein, Moriah Schwarzfuchs, Ekaterina Sherman, Nimrod Stiebel, Tomer Shapira, Barak Zmora, Inbar Zak.

Course instructors: Erez Golani Solomon, David Adika 
Curators: Aliza Bass, Erez Golani Solomon, David Adika, Ilanit Konopny 
Teaching assistants: Sai Alon, Aliza Bass, Katerin Pavlova 
Guest instructor: Christian Dimmer 
Advisors: Christopher Pokarier, Ran Zwigenberg, Keigo Kobayashi
Guest participants: Saeed Hleihel, Sharon Ya’ari, Ifat Finkelman

5-19.3.25

Opening: Tuesday | March 11, 2025 | 17:30
Clore Arts and Design Gallery
Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design Jerusalem
Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Campus, 1 Zmora St., Jerusalem