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Library Circles, a series of research, talks, and experimental interventions by UAE practitioners at the Jameel Library and Jameel Arts Centre, delves into alternative research methodologies with a focus on “thinking in public.”
For this iteration, Jameel Library presents a research display by Samar Halloum.
Samar Halloum examines the socio-cultural and built environment dynamics within refugee camps, focusing on how refugees shape the permanence of these temporary spaces through informal practices and resilience. This investigation highlights the influence of oral history, communal practices, and spatial adaptations through fieldwork observations and interviews.
In Dheisheh Refugee Camp in Palestine, displaced villagers adapt some communal practices into the refugee camp, reflecting the socio-spatial norms of their former villages. The project highlights the agency of refugees in the production of permanence within refugee camps, revealing how informal practices influence the built environment over decades These practices trace the continuity of the Musha’ system from Palestinian highland villages into the evolving built environment of the camps, challenging rigid, imposed planning frameworks.
About Samar Halloum
Samar Halloum, a Palestinian architect and educator, holds a Master of Architecture (M.Arch) from Yale University and a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from the American University of Sharjah (AUS). Halloum was the recipient of the William Wirt Winchester Travel Fellowship Award. Before earning her master’s degree, she works in the United Arab Emirates on culturally driven projects. Halloum was the Design and Research Lead for the National Pavilion UAE at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition at La Biennale di Venezia. Halloum is currently an assistant professor at the American University of Sharjah.
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