DUBAI: Until Nov. 10, visitors to Dubai Design District can relish in riveting large-scale design installations, exhibitions and fairs dedicated to high-end and collectible design objects from the Gulf, wider Middle East and international markets.
The annual event, now in its 10th year, will present over 500 designers, professionals and brands from various creative industries, transforming the bustling UAE metropolis into a global hub for design and art.
Numerous returning elements include Abwab, an annual commission showcasing talents from across Southwest Asia and North Africa, dedicated this year to the theme of vernacular architecture and regenerative design processes through the utilization of local materials, climate-responsive techniques and community-centered designs.
Abwab this year will feature three regional practices that will present their work in pavilions across the Dubai Design District. These include “Present/Absent Mudhif” by Ola Saad Znad from Iraq, portraying the Marsh Arabs’ architectural heritage in Iraq using reeds and ancient Sumerian techniques; “ReRoot” by Jordanian-Palestinian Dima Al Srouri, Andy Cartier from France, Rosa Hamalainen from Finland and Palestinian-Lebanese Dahlia Hamati exploring emergency housing solutions through an ecological lens using palm waste and mycelium; and “Material Witnesses and Narrating Lifeforms” by Miriam Hillawi Abraham from Ethiopia, which draws inspiration from coral stone found in early settlements on the East African coast.
Other notable returning platforms include workshops in the Maker’s Space and the weekend Marketplace, offering one-of-a-kind handcrafted objects and cuisine.
In a dedicated section within the 10th edition of Downtown Design will be the new fair titled Dubai Editions. Featured are over 50 galleries, design studios and collectives from the region and internationally presenting editioned artworks, collectible design objects and furniture and editioned prints.
The new fair reflects the changing demographic of Dubai, Pablo del Val, artistic director of Art Dubai, told Arab News.
“The fair is extremely exciting because it represents the shifts taking place in the city,” said Del Val. “There are many new generations of people that have recently moved to Dubai that have different collecting needs.
“People are beginning to buy properties that are arranged in new ways with different needs,” he added.
Participants include Dubai and New York-based Leila Heller; renowned Lebanese carpetmaker Iwan Maktabi, which opened its new flagship showroom in Dubai’s Jumeirah 3 featuring the first-ever global shop-in-shop for Italian contemporary rug company, cc tapis; Dastan from Tehran; Comptoir de Mines Galerie from Marrakech; Studio Bazazo and Fadi Basbous Studio from Lebanon; and spaces from Dubai, including Gulf Photo Plus, The Urbanist, Meem Gallery and Zawyeh Gallery.
“The fair offers a great concept of presenting works that are less expensive by our artists,” Leila Heller told Arab News. “Our artists became so inspired to create new prints and sculptures that are available in editions. The fair also offers works on paper, so our artists have created smaller works in paper as well.”
Heller will present works by artists such as Farideh Lashai, Reza Aramesh, Keith Haring, Darvish Fakhr, Azza Al Qubaisi and Stephany Sanossian.
Iwan Maktabi is showing a carpet designed by acclaimed Emirati artist Mohamed Ahmed Ibrahim. CEO Mohamed Maktabi said they switched their booth from Downtown Design to Dubai Editions and are launching what he calls “Iwan Maktabi: Artist Edition,” presenting the brand’s special carpet collaborations with artists.
While Dubai Design Week will offer much to see and experience, it represents a shift and growth in Dubai’s recent population that has sought out the Gulf city as a new place to call home.
As Del Val put it: “Everything starts to change when you belong to a community where you expect to live for a much longer period of time.
“This (fair) could be an incubator for things to come.”
