Tel Aviv’s ‘Open Houses’ offers fresh peek at private and public spaces

City’s annual Batim Mibifnim, Hebrew for ‘homes from the inside,’ event opens for registration on May 1

Tel Aviv is set to hold its annual Batim Mibifnim Open House weekend, giving attendees an opportunity to visit homes, public spaces, and buildings and get a deeper, more intimate view of the familiar sites of the city.

The annual series of events will take place May 7 through 9. Most events are open without advance registration, while those requiring booking will open on Friday morning, May 1.

This year’s edition marks the 50th anniversary of the Tel Aviv Foundation, with visits to dozens of buildings constructed throughout the city with the civic foundation’s initiative and support.

One of the open houses available for viewing is 70 Hayarkon Street, designed by architect Ze’ev Rechter in 1934 with a later 1965 addition by Arieh Sharon.

The Bauhaus building, one of twin three-story buildings with apartments facing the sea, was recently restored and renovated by Shefer Architects. The property includes a building known as Beit HaShomer, a villa that was once home to iconic Israeli singer Meir Ariel and his family.

There will be guided tours of several apartments in the building, open to the first 25 visitors every hour on the hour, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on May 7 and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on May 8. No advance registration is required.

This year’s Open Houses include a tour of the Gagon Shelter in Jaffa, Israel’s only purpose-built shelter for the homeless. Tours will be led by architect Daniela Gazit of Yoav Messer Architects, the firm that led the design process. Tours will be held on May 7 at 12 p.m. and 1 p.m., limited to 30 participants each, with no advance registration required.

Visitors can get a glimpse of Florentin life in a building of loft apartments in the bohemian neighborhood where businesses and creatives reside side by side. The building at the corner of Yedidya Frenkel and HaShuk streets is home to two private Hebrew-language schools as well as a fashion designer and collector, with a bar cafe on the first floor.

Visitors can stop in on May 8 between 10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. and on May 9
from 11:00 a.m. until 5:30 p.m.

For more information on the tours, houses and buildings being shown, go to the Batim Mibifnim website.