Bethlehem Biopsy
The Bethlehem Biopsy is an artistic mapping project aiming to work with the full range of local people and stakeholders to re-examine the social, cultural, ecological and economic position of Bethlehem. Instead of taking tissue samples as one would from a human being, this project uses a variety of cultural probes to investigate the local social body and its unique ailments. Like eastern medicine, this biopsy takes a holistic view of the body and to look at the interconnections between diverse issues to get a sense of the whole.
The project is an art piece which brings a particular set of instruments and methods for exploring and visualising Bethlehem. While some of the instruments used to create this map, such as the Decibel Meters seem familiar to us, others like Emotion Mapping or Sensory Mapping are exotic. More important than the unusual instruments or visualisations is the fact that this project does not hold a particular local agenda. It does not censor or filter the collected information in order to persuade people to implement or build something. In fact, its central aim is to hold up the complex network of local issues for all to see and reflect upon and not to attempt to untangle or resolve them.
The final map will be for anyone who cares about Bethlehem or who really ought to care about it. The hope is that all the Bethlehem stake-holders such as local people, interest groups, developers and the council will use this map to revitalise their discussions. In particular, we insist on the role of people’s sensory and emotional experiences as an essential part of all political discussions. How each one of us ‘feels’ about each other and our environment is the foundation stone upon which any democratic decision-making has to be based. To do this, we first have to enable people to focus more strongly on their own experiences, reflect and question them and and then to articulate and share them through a political process where their personal experiences are valued and not disregarded. The challenge that this map will presents to all the local stake-holders is how to use this document productively and include it within the process of politics. It is this complexity and difficulty of how to situate the content of this map that should also give it a value and meaning to a wider audience who are interested in new ways to represent local and intra-local issues or ways to instigate local public spheres.