The exhibition, in collaboration with the archive of modern construction at EPFL (the Federal Polytechnic School of Lausanne) lays out a comprehensive view of vernacular architecture through a unique collection of documents and models, presenting a wide range of spatial, symbolic and constructive solutions that formed the configurations of work and residential buildings in traditional societies.

The vernacular practices from all over the world do not provide answers to contemporary needs or provide sustainable alternatives to the current state of affairs, however, the wealth of creative and impressive solutions inherent in them illustrates the human ability to do the best in given circumstances and to utilize the available resources as efficiently as possible.

The test cases presented at the same time in the museum and the gallery named after Monio Gitai Weinroib demonstrate three recurring themes in vernacular architecture in many regions of the Mediterranean basin and the Middle East – water management, courtyard-style dwellings, nomadism and cave dwellings – and this from the research perspective that guides the EPFL’s collection of vernacular architecture and is The fourth theme in the exhibition: the study of materials and construction techniques.