On the Hummus Route

On the Hummus Route is a utopian journey between cities, people, and dreams, culminating in a groundbreaking collection of recipes, essays, stories, street photography, illustrations, and more about the world’s golden grain – chickpea. This lavish art book / cookbook has won numerous international accolades, including the Gourmand Best Book of the Year in All Categories and Best Book for Peace, as well as an IPPY Gold Medal.

Dan Alexander, serving as Chief Editor, book designer, and art director, created and led the book’s unprecedented international collaboration of more than thirty contributors from diverse backgrounds. Key figures in the world of culture, cuisine, philosophy, science, and art joined him on this journey across nine Middle Eastern hummus hubs, from Cairo, all the way up to Damascus via Gaza, Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Nazareth, Acre, and Beirut – all put together in the folds of one volume. He developed the book’s concept and envisioned that the chickpea, such a simple ingredient that is a staple in every home, can be at the core of a high-end publication resonating the social message: It’s all about humanity.

We used design as a language for communicating key messages about the community in which we live. He created a forward-thinking design language to bring the authentic essence of each city as a chapter. He developed a set of carefully planned graphic grids to streamline a coherent flow between the book’s multiple content types (recipes, essays, anecdotes, and imagery), while constructing a typography that harmonizes between three different languages featured as a gateway to the entire book and each chapter.

In this book especially, design carries an accurate definition in substance, echoing messages of optimism and positivity that aspire to mobilize change.

Contributors / Writers
Dan Alexander, Nof Atamna-Ismaeel, Yosef Baballah, Dr. On Barak, Prof. Liora Gvion, Karim Haidar, Joudie Kalla, Areen Abu-Hamid Kurdi, Itzik Luzon, Farouk Mardam-Bey, Mohammad Orfali, Orly Peli-Bronshtein, Anna-Marie Ravitzki, Claudia Roden, Ariel Rosenthal, Hind Tahboub, Sami Tamimi.

Contributors / Illustrators and Photographers
Anonymous from Syria, Mohammed Asad, Felipe Romero Beltrán, Josh Berer, Yaron Brener, Dr. Yahya Diwer, David Loftus, Felix Lupa, Karim Mostafa, Eilon Paz, Shai Peri, Photo Elia, Avi S. Ravitzki, Nimrod Saunders, Brandon Tauszik.

See more, On the Hummus Route 

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