Joseph Dadoune's 'In the Desert' Cycle Explores Ofakim's Utopian Failure

Joseph Dadoune's multi-year project 'In the Desert' examines the Israeli development town Ofakim through film, photography, and architectural intervention. Born in Nice in 1975, Dadoune emigrated to Ofakim at age five. His work includes the films 'Chanti,' 'Universes,' and the feature 'Sion,' which blend identity, myth, and Orientalist constructions. Since 2009, he has focused on Ofakim's economic, social, and cultural reality. The film 'Ofakim' (2010), made with local teenagers, depicts them carrying a missile from the Of'Ar factory through the desert, evoking a Sisyphean march. The installation 'Horizons-Fragments' (2009) uses six screens to show abandoned cinemas, defunct factories, and graffiti. Dadoune also staged actions: 'Phoenix' (2010) shows him suspended near an acacia tree, while 'In the Desert' (2010) involves burying a cypress and palm tree. The centerpiece is the Of'Ar project, a rehabilitation of a textile factory designed with architect Zvi Efrat, aiming to create a modular cultural and social space. Ofakim, founded in 1955 with 24,400 residents, suffers high unemployment after its textile industry collapsed in the 1980s. Dadoune's work critiques the heroic pioneer iconography of 1950s Israeli propaganda, instead presenting a fragmented, melancholic landscape. A screening of 'Ofakim' took place in May 2010 at the Patish Cave beneath an Ottoman citadel, attended by residents and musician Piris Eliyahu.