Front and back covers of Zvi Efrat’s “The Object of Zionism”, with beige cloth, a white paper band and ribbon bookmarks.
Cover of Zvi Efrat’s “The Object of Zionism”, with beige cloth and a white paper band on black.

The Object of Zionism: The Architecture of Israel

What can images tell us when they are placed in relation to one another?

Context

Architect and architectural historian Zvi Efrat examines the formation of the State of Israel through the lens of architecture, urban planning and spatial politics. Rather than presenting buildings as isolated objects, the book explores how landscapes, settlements and infrastructures became instruments in shaping a new state.

Approach

Archives rarely reveal their meaning through individual images alone. The publication preserves the integrity of Zvi Efrat’s archive while using sequence, scale, and juxtaposition to uncover historical, spatial, and political relationships across its contents. Photographs are composed as visual arguments rather than illustrations, encouraging readers to discover connections instead of predetermined interpretations. In doing so, the publication designs the archive as a tool for thinking rather than a repository of images.

Spread from “The Object of Zionism” with freely arranged historical aerial and architectural photographs.
Dossier spread on “Neumann–Hecker–Sharon’s Polygonism”, with geometric architecture, running text and a black-and-white photograph.
Book spread with narrow text columns, a floor plan and historical building and aerial photographs.
Spread with several photographs of a white domed building and a historical portrait.
Spread with photographs of concrete architecture, with a red element accenting the large upper image.
Spread with aerial photographs of settlement patterns and a colour landscape photograph.
“Oscar Niemeyer’s Exile” dossier with a historical photograph of two people, text and a red book image.
Pale green spread with a floor plan and black-and-white photographs of angular interiors and staircases.
Spread with historical black-and-white photographs of domed shelters and the surrounding terrain.
Spread with sideways narrow text columns distributed across both pages.
Project Title
The Object of Zionism: The Architecture of Israel
Client
Zvi Efrat
Year
2018
Services
Editorial Design
Role
Graphic Design, Design Development
Project Lead
Matthias Görlich
Design Direction
Matthias Görlich
Graphic Design
Charalampos Lazos, Anna Kraus, Pawel Wolowitsch
Publisher
Spector Books
Image Credits
Spector Books
Printing
DZA Druckerei zu Altenburg GmbH