Past Forward: Building Tomorrow from Yesterday
Kfar Yasif, situated in northern Israel, is a village with a rich history of self-sustainability and community cohesion, originating from its central core. The village, with its traditional structures and narrow alleys, holds memories of vibrant public spaces and a strong sense of community, as recalled by its elders. Traditionally, Kfar Yasif was organically designed with narrow alleys, suggesting complex veins connecting stone and clay houses, suited to the local climate. Rooftops and gardens played significant roles in community life, with people sharing accommodation, food, and celebrations.
In recent decades, Kfar Yasif has faced significant challenges, losing many of its defining characteristics and values. Modernization has impacted agriculture and architecture, and the expansion from the historical core has eroded the village’s distinctive values and heritage. Hindered by existing land use plans and private ownership, urban renewal and densification processes have been slow, forcing the younger generation to migrate to cities for better housing and jobs. This phenomenon, affecting many Arab towns in Israel, leads to a loss of heritage. The research question in this study is: How can one develop a dense innovative urban fabric while preserving the heritage that define the town’s identity? The case of Kfar Yasif.
The design strategy in this study emphasizes connectivity for pedestrians with an integrated network, preserving agricultural heritage through urban farming, promoting a dense, mixed-purpose urban plan to foster community interaction, and using sustainable local materials to encourage eco-friendly construction, all inspired by traditional practices from the old core.
To implement the strategy, research on natural expansion led to the discovery of the pattern of the Physarum polycephalum mold, an organism that efficiently navigates from its starting point to the nearest food source using the shortest routes. This involved using a technological tools to model the mold, incorporating parameters from the old core. The model created an organic network structure that encourages innovative building typologies and diverse public spaces. This approach enables the creation of “quarters” that are connected to a central axis, responding to the urgent need for dense, flexible and sustainable urban spaces.
