Manual of Decolonization

During a residency in Bethlehem, Venice-based design and research studio Salottobuono formulated a 'strategy of subversion' for Israeli settlements in the West Bank. From this comes the elegant Manual of Decolonization; a generic but detailed resource for all post-occupation scenarios. Assessing how evacuated and imposed structures can be transformed in collaboration with local stakeholders, the book's plans, models and projections are divided into themes like 'De-parcelling', 'Re-combining' and 'Un-roofing'; landscape, nature and materials are considered at length. The outcome is an open-ended template for the regeneration of disputed areas, dissociating buildings and communities from oppression.