White City of Tel-Aviv – the Modern Movement

The White City of Tel-Aviv is an urban area in Tel Aviv, Israel, noted for its large concentration of International Style (Bauhaus) architecture. The buildings were erected primarily in the 1920s and 1930s by architects influenced by the Modern Movement.

The area contains numerous flat-roofed, white-plastered buildings with ribbon windows, pilotis and functionalist details; walking tours and architecture-focused visits are common. Many streets retain grouped ensembles of period apartment buildings, civic structures and renovated villas.

The International Style arrived with architects who emigrated from Europe in the early 20th century; the resulting urban expansion created large residential and commercial districts built to modernist principles during the interwar period.

The White City is located in central Tel Aviv along several boulevards and neighbourhood blocks near the city centre and the Mediterranean coastline.

• Building count: The city contains one of the largest concentrations of International Style (Bauhaus) buildings in the world, with several thousand structures from the 1930s era.

What to See #

• Rothschild Boulevard: A principal tree-lined avenue in central Tel Aviv that passes many early 20th-century International Style buildings and civic landmarks.
• Bauhaus building ensembles: A concentration of street blocks in central Tel Aviv featuring characteristic International Style residential and commercial buildings from the 1930s constructed by émigré architects.