The kasbah of Algiers has everything: all the elements of an architecture that shows immeasurable sensitivity to human needs and desires." Le Corbusier expressed his great admiration for the architecture of the Orient with this statement. Following in his footsteps, many of today's architects and designers draw inspiration from the Arab world.
The exhibition demonstrates the diversity of domestic lifestyles between Morocco, Syria and the Arabian peninsula - from the nomadic tents of the Tuareg or Bedouins to Moroccan kasbahs; from the grand courtyard houses in cities such as Marrakech, Damascus or Cairo to buildings by twentieth-century architects like Hassan Fathy, Elie Mouyal or Abdelwahed El-Wakil. Numerous models and reconstructed room environments provide visitors with an opportunity to experience various building types physically, while domestic objects such as ceramics, textiles, tools and architectural elements offer impressions of everyday customs. Numerous photographs and films were produced specially for the exhibition, documenting forms of domestic life virtually unknown to outsiders. With interiors of private homes on display, 'Living Under the Crescent Moon' offers the visitor insights into a previously little known realm of the Arab world, for the private sphere has traditionally been protected from strangers.
