Still from Ada: My Mother the Architect (2024), by Yael Melamede.
Still from Ada: My Mother the Architect (2024), by Yael Melamede.
Ada: My Mother the Architect
Directed by Yael Melamede (Israel and USA, 2024, 81 min.). English and Hebrew with English subtitles. Boston Premiere.
Ada Karmi Melamede is one of the most accomplished architects in the world, yet her work remains largely unrecognized beyond architectural circles. Born in 1936 in Mandatory Palestine, Ada, the daughter of pioneering architect Dov Karmi, grew up and into architecture. Referred to as a “sculptor of light,” she has designed many beautiful buildings in Israel, most notably the Supreme Court of Israel, Ben Gurion Airport, the Open University, and numerous other civic institutions around the country.
In this luminous documentary, Oscar- and Emmy-nominated filmmaker Yael Melamede crafts an elegant portrait of a visionary artist, and an intimate story of her relationship with her mother. With a cinematic aesthetic all her own, Yael, a trained architect herself, offers a revealing look at art making and the creative process. At the same time, she widens the scope to explore the sacrifices required of a woman and mother working in a male-dominated field. Interviewees include Ada’s former students at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, former President of the Supreme Court of Israel Aharon Barak, critic Paul Goldberger, and architects Frank Gehry and Moshe Safdie.
Winner, Best Cinematography, Jerusalem International Film Festival.
“One of the best documentaries of the year.… Spellbindingly eloquent, even poetic. You may never walk through a building the same way again.” –RogerEbert.com
“A spectacular film on so many levels; the storytelling, the cinematography, the editing. This is a giant of a film.” –Ali Velshi, MS NOW
Wheelchair accessible
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