Israel Jordan Arava
A peace symbol sculpture seen from space on the Israeli-Jordanian border.
Jean- Luc MEYER-ABBATUCCI, 1997
Jean-Luc MEYER-ABBATUCCI conceived the ARAVA VALLEY project. It consists of creating an enormous art work by using a part of the land on the WADI ARAVA. The intention is to show that Nature has no borders and to emphasize peace between Jordan and Israel. The location envisaged is a desert strip sharing the border between Jordanian and Israeli frontier in the region where the “grand rift” runs from Southern Turkey to Mozambique and separates Africa and Asia.
This art form will be seen through satellite images with courtesy of the French Satellite SPOT ( C.N.E.S ) and the European Space Agency ( E.S.A ).
The art form is the shape of a dove, which is considered as a symbol of earth’s fertility, as well as the source of human life: the shape is dug in the ground and will receive plantations. 45 000 locust trees were planted on approximately one kilometer along the Jordan-Israeli border. The locust trees are sprayed according to runoff, the irrigation principle, a rainwater drop system.
The following document presents the mails of the governmental agreements in PDF format:
Mails of the governmental agreements
Site photos and first locust tree plantations:
Principle irrigation plans:
Jean-Luc MEYER-ABBATUCCI has degrees from the Fine Arts School of Paris and the SanFrancisco Art Institute and he is based on Paris. His paintings and sculptures have been exhibited all around the world and he creates his art during his travels. His desire is to be a “free creator,” not limited to earth’s boundaries and having the world as his studio.
In 1995, he realized a sculpture in the Neguev desert, which has been photographed from the sky by N.A.S.A. It was the first time an artist and an astronaut collaborated.
The natural installation made out of the most basic of materials, earth and plants, only becomes visible using the most advanced technology available to Man. This interaction between Nature and a high technology satellite photographs gives a special dimension to this project.
The pictures taken by the satellite being the end result of this stage, represents a painting for the artist.
The location envisaged is a desert strip sharing the border between Jordanian and Israeli frontier in the region where the “grand rift” runs from Southern Turkey to Mozambique and separates Africa from Asia. This rift, which is still expanding today, shows the earth evolving without consideration for countries or other man made frontiers.
Localization of the Peace Forest :
