From Shelters to Dwellings: The Dismantling and Reassembling of the Refugee Camp

The importance of a "dwelling" is often taken for granted - yet it is a human necessity. But how can a shelter within a refugee camp ever become a dwelling? Ayham Dalal investigates this question by bringing "dwelling" to the centre of refugee camps' studies. He argues that the transformation from shelter to dwelling is a creative and imaginative process, in which social relations are carved into space whilst politics, time and materiality are negotiated. The book shows that in order to dwell, refugees have to dismantle the machinery of the camp and reassemble it differently. Drawing on fieldwork in Zaatari camp, Ayham Dalal offers a unique architectural insight into dwelling as a complex human phenomenon situated at heart of our precarious modern living.