The Beit Hahaim Foundation

Theme for this graduation project were the cemeteries of Tétouan. The project site benefited from a central location within the city was marked by an imposing topography and allowed a clear interpretation of each layer contributing to the city’s urban development. The site had the particularity of containing the elements that made up the city’s history.

In order to challenge this overlooked heritage, this project focuses on the creation of a new space: the Beit Hahaïm Foundation. The building is organized around three pathways that guide the visitor through the site. The first is a public path with exhibitions that bring to light the city’s history through its people, as well as the recognition of Moroccan cultural and religious diversity. The second path is genealogical, and is organised within four pavilions in which are embedded the names of the 10 450 Tétouan Jews buried in the cemetery below. These pavilions are constantly in dialogue with the information supplied by the archaeology and archive centre alongside the foundation. The genealogical path exists so as to restore and safeguard the memory of the Tétouan Jews and to allow their descendants to discover their own genealogy as well as the history of their ancestors, maybe even renewing a relationship with their ancestral homelands. Finally, the educational path. The aim of this third path is to raise awareness for the daily passers by of the cemetery, a young audience due to the close presence of two primary schools and a secondary school, of their city’s history and of a message of tolerance and respect for cultural and religious diversity. \nHaving thoroughly researched Mediterranean vernacular architecture, I discovered that Tétouan was key place for the use and implementation of Limestone, readily available in the city. However, this material is largely misused today, despite the presence of numerous stone quarries dotted around the city, high up in the Jbel Ajnane. It was clear to me that the use of structural stone for this project was essential; beyond that fact that it would be implementing a local and long lasting resource, the limestone would allow the architecture of the foundation to resonate with the material characteristics of the tombs in the cemetery. Furthermore, the solidity, timelessness and lasting quality of this material echoed with the chosen programme and its main themes: memory and its preservation.