This open studio and discussion emerge from a residency grounded in practical inquiry and field engagement, exploring architectural approaches rooted in the Palestinian context—particularly in the Naqab Desert—and responsive to urgent conditions on the ground.
The Lab is hosting Naqab Architects, a collective founded by Lobna Al Sane that engages in collaborative research to imagine architectural alternatives in response to the ongoing threats faced by residents of “unrecognized” villages in southern Palestine—threats that include demolition, displacement, and systemic persecution.
The team will work in partnership with Haitham Canaan (of the Nabat Farm initiative) and alongside a group of architects and volunteers to carry out a series of experimental building practices. These will focus on constructing shelters using palm fronds—a lightweight, affordable material with distinctive aesthetic qualities that grows abundantly in the plains of Tamra and along the edges of the Naqab Desert.
The open studio will present the research and practical outcomes developed during the residency. Lobna and the contributing team will share reflections on these architectural experiments—their impact on communities in the Naqab, and their broader relevance to ongoing struggles for survival and resilience under the conditions of life in Palestine today.
Naqab Architects is an initiative founded by Lobna Al Sana two years ago to address architectural and spatial challenges in unrecognized Bedouin villages through design, construction, and planning. In collaboration with the Regional Council for Unrecognized Villages and local representatives, the initiative develops advanced mapping tools to document villages excluded from official and global maps. It also produced a local shelter prototype to protect residents during wars and airstrikes, as over 50 villages lack any infrastructure or emergency systems.
Haitham Canaan is an environmental activist and farmer from Tamra in the Western Galilee, Palestine. He is a co-founder of Nabat Farm for natural history and serves as the organizer of its programs. His work focuses on preserving the natural history of living organisms in green spaces and connecting it to contemporary life in Arab communities, using it as a tool to promote abundance and sovereignty over natural and food resources. This approach aims to provide solutions to environmental, economic, and social challenges, especially under the conditions of colonialism. Additionally, Haitham plays an active role in supporting local environmental initiatives that emphasize the development of agroecology and natural building practices.
Students in residency with Naqab Architects: Lina Mtalka, Balsam Abu Ajaj, and Suzan Abu Kush.
Participants: Abeer Aref, Leen Abu Najem, Yafa Darweesh, Jawdat Abed, Areej Al-Huneiti, Abdallah Tabaza.
In collaboration with: Mariam Al-Azzeh and Fawzi Bata.
Special Thanks to Bayouda Crafts Association, Maher and Zaher Haram.