Last presents at Downtown Design – Titled “Wadi”, this installation draws inspiration from the breathtaking beauty of desert scenery and highlights immersive lighting designed by Martin Gallo as its centrepiece.
 
#downtowndesign #lightinginstallation #sculpturallighting #lightingdesign #lightingdesigner #immersiveinstallation #artinstallation #designweek #dubaidesignweek #sculpturaldesign

The idea that clients in the Middle East seek ornamented interiors is outdated, say local designers

Promotion: now in its ninth year, Dubai Design Week's Downtown Design trade show has been instrumental in helping the emirate to establish its own contemporary design language, according to local creatives.

Downtown Design is a trade show that takes place during the city's annual design week and is a reflection of how Dubai's economy and design scene is currently booming, according to the event organisers.

Held within the emirate's sprawling design district (d3), Downtown Design includes Downtown Editions – a section dedicated to limited-edition and bespoke design – and is also bolstered by pop-up concepts, design installations, and a programme of talks and masterclasses, networking events and creative experiences.

Dubai locals say that Design Week's Downtown Design has been instrumental in helping the emirate to establish its own design language

"Dubai and the wider region have made a significant shift forward in design and architecture in the last decade from our own first-hand experience," said founding principal at architecture studio Anarchitect, Jonathan Ashmore, which was established in Dubai in 2013 before opening an office in London in 2019.

"Where Dubai was often viewed from the outside in, we now rather look at it from the inside out with many design ideas and innovative solutions coming from within the region to the wider world, rather than importing ideas and solutions."

The event will take place on the d3 Waterfront in Dubai Design District (d3)

Creatives working in the region agree that the event has helped Dubai to break away from the image of opulence that used to be associated with the emirate and helped it to develop its own contemporary design language.

"The past few years have seen Dubai carve out its own, distinctive design language, one that subtly takes cues from the region's heritage, makes use of locally-sourced materials and responds to its surroundings," said founder and creative director of design studio Roar, Pallavi Dean.

"It's exciting to see how Dubai, and the Middle East as a whole, is nurturing a new wave of talent that is eager to create fun, innovative design, breaking away from the image of opulence that used to be associated with the region."

Downtown Design takes place from 9 to 12 November

Meshary AINassar, design director and founder of Studio Meshary AlNassar agrees: "The misconception that clients in the Middle East seek the gilded and ornamented Versailles interiors is outdated."

"Nowadays we see a new generation of well-travelled design enthusiasts with a well-rounded knowledge of brands, designers and aesthetics, and that appreciate and value good design; be it contemporary, modern, or a mix of different styles, the region is hungry for accessible and high-quality design products and special finds," he added.

As a result of its trade show opportunities for local brands, Dubai has recently been ranked number two in the "City of Choice" by the Boston Consulting Group for its economic opportunities and has been ranked as the number one MENASA region city to live in by wealth management company Julius Baer, in its recent Global Wealth and Lifestyle Report.

According to the Downtown Design event organisers, this has had a knock-on effect on the real estate market, and according to a recent Dubai Commercial Property Market Report Dubai's residential market "recorded its highest number of transactions ever this February, with the luxury market activity growing 156 per cent annually".

This year's event, which takes place from 9 to 12 November on the d3 Waterfront in Dubai Design District (d3), will see the opening of a number of new design showrooms, the introduction of new audience programmes and an ambitious sustainability plan.

To view more about Downtown Design 2022 visit its website.

Downtown Design takes place from 9 to 12 November 2022. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

Partnership content

This article was written by Dezeen for Downtown Design as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership contenthere.

The post The idea that clients in the Middle East seek ornamented interiors is outdated, say local designers appeared first on Dezeen.

#all #design #promotions #dubaidesignweek

Exil Collective showcases work by emerging Lebanese designers

Design platform Exil Collective has launched its first collection at Dubai Design Week to spotlight work by both up-and-coming and established Lebanese designers.

Exil Collective's online platform features designs by over 20 independent studios in Lebanon, made by artisans and craftspeople that are also based in the country.

Top image: a head-shaped flower vase is among the Exil Collective products. Above: Youssef Bassil's pieces include a lamp

Among the products exhibited in the Downtown Design section of the 2021 Dubai Design Week were brass ashtrays and lamps by Youssef Bassil, sand-cast aluminium car sculptures by Antoine Guekjian and a globe-shaped, modular night light by Laetitia Jbeily.

"Exil is a bit of an incubator, which is the point because design in Lebanon is usually very expensive and luxury," co-founder Bassil told Dezeen.

"We wanted to break this mould, we wanted to invite designers from students all the way up to very established designers such as Marc Baroud."

A combined vase and mirror is filled with flowers

Each designer was given a spec sheet outlining the parameters for the weight, cost, materials and dimensions of the products so that the designs wouldn't be too expensive to ship when bought from the Exil website.

This resulted in pieces in materials and designs that aren't usually associated with Lebanon, including colourful tufted mats designed by RADCAT.

Handtufted coasters by RADCAT come in various colours

"The rugs, and the coasters that are also made from rugs; tapestry in Lebanon never really looks like that," Bassil said. "I think that was very interesting."

"And the metals and wood, very raw materials, that also shows more what's coming in Lebanon. We've got fantastic sandcast aluminium."

Materials used include sandcast aluminium

The pieces on show as part of Exil Collective were made by local artisans from a number of different fields, many of whom appreciated the challenge of working in new ways with the materials.

"Some of the artisans were surprised, as they're used to making larger pieces of furniture and one-off pieces – they're not used to creating repeated pieces that have to be consistent," Bassil said.

Exil Collective presents work by emerging designers

"Since the economic crisis in Lebanon is very tough, people want to work, and on top of that they were very excited to be working on something different and see the prospect of something that may be produced for the long term," he added.

The criteria set for the designs also created a line for the designers to follow, Bassil suggested.

[

Read:

Khaled El Mays' Transformers furniture collection evokes crouched robots

](https://www.dezeen.com/2021/05/28/khaled-el-mays-transformers-furniture-collection-design/)

"It's somewhat homogenous in its own way – it's very eclectic as well but there's something that connects it," he said of the collection. "It's all very simple and modest and you can feel the materials in the objects."

Exil Collective hopes the project, which was named Architectural Digest Middle East's Emerging Talent of the Year, will become a way for an international audience to discover Lebanese designers.

A modular night lamp can be opened or closed

The thriving design scene in Beirut, Lebanon's capital, was severely affected by a devastating explosion that destroyed large parts of the city in August 2020. More than 60 international architecture firms donated artworks and drawings to help raise funds for rebuilding the city.

Earlier this year, Lebanese designer Khaled El Mays released his Transformers collection, featuring sofas and armchairs partly informed by the Transformers toys and films.

Dubai Design Week took place on 8 to 13 November 2021 in Dubai . SeeDezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

The post Exil Collective showcases work by emerging Lebanese designers appeared first on Dezeen.

#products #all #design #productdesign #lebanon #beirut #dubaidesignweek

Global activism informs student projects at Dubai Design Week

A 3D-printed brace and hugging chair were among the pieces on show at this year's Global Grad Show and MENA Grad Show, as design students react to the coronavirus pandemic and global activist movements.

Sixty projects by university graduates from the Middle East and North Africa are currently on show at the annual design festival Dubai Design Week under the MENA Grad Show banner, including a mobile dialysis centre and an AI device that reacts to offensive speech.

The NYMO robot is on display at the MENA Grad Show

The Global Grad Show normally takes place physically in Dubai, but was moved online as many global graduates were unable to travel to the region this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Alongside the virtual exhibition, a physical event, called the MENA Grad Show, presented the work of local students.

Many of the chosen projects for both shows focus on healthcare, an issue that curator Carlo Rizzo said built upon the work shown last year.

Sapthen is a 3D-printed brace

"When I edited last year's edition, I really noticed how the vast majority of projects were looking at making the life of patients and people living with illness and disability as close to a normal life as possible," Rizzo told Dezeen.

"Whereas this year there is a really strong focus on access," he added. "So this idea of, for example, a remote clinic that does dialysis and moves around, or a digital system that allows a doctor to monitor remotely what's happening at home."

The Oto hugging chair is designed to help people with autism self-soothe

"I think this is a direct result of us witnessing the pandemic and witnessing the healthcare systems, in some cases failing, in some cases being stretched to a degree that they never been stretched before. Graduates have been incredibly responsive to these ideas," Rizzo added.

Among the healthcare projects on show in Dubai are Shefa Masr, a mobile dialysis service in Egypt that lets patients with kidney failure access hemodialysis medical care services and reserve dialysis sessions without having to go to a big city, and NYMO, a robot that encourages self-care for elderly people.

A number of projects, such as F*** Ethics, focused on making societal changes

At the Global Grad Show, projects with a health focus include the Immunization Calculator – a digital service that monitors the vaccine status of children in Uganda, Sapthen, a 3D-printed, adaptable brace, and a hugging chair designed to comfort people with autism.

Another noticeable theme for this year's shows was a focus on creating solutions for a fairer society.

[

Read:

The Lost Graduation Show presents student projects from around the world at Supersalone

](https://www.dezeen.com/2021/09/15/lost-graduation-show-student-projects-supersalone/)

"I think there has been a reaction to global activist movements that deal with safety and diversity and issues of equality, and all of that is being reflected into what I consider to be one of the key themes of this year's Global Grad Show," Rizzo explained.

"We call [this theme] a fair and sacred society – projects that really look at these issues," he added. "To me, that's the biggest news for this year's Global Grad Show; there has really been a strong reaction from students in that."

The DiDa doll was designed to teach kids about boundaries

The theme was also evident at the MENA Grad Show, where projects included Arshya Rais' Bindass Vellas, which aims to question the deep-rooted role of patriarchy in Indian society. Her conceptual brand targets a younger male audience to encourage them to help out more in the home.

"There are some small, everyday things that underpin patriarchal value that we ignore," Rais told Dezeen. "One of those things is the unequal division of household chores; it's always the woman who is doing it; the man of the house, not so much."

"So I created a brand which has packaging related to cooking and cleaning tools, targeted especially towards the younger generation of Indian males," she added. "Our generation is ready for change, it just needs a bit of a push."

Themis is an AI device that reacts to offensive language

Also on show at the MENA Grad Show was the Themis, an AI device that "personifies political correctness" by recognising offensive speech, such as racial slurs or slut-shaming, and audibly reacting to them.

Global Grad Show projects that focus on the subject include F*** Ethics, a design program created to "help tech startups assess and act upon the ethical implications of their products" and DiDa, a doll designed to help parents teach children about sex and boundaries.

For Rizzo, the domination of these subjects at this year's MENA and Global Grad Shows is an indication of what kind of design we will see in the near future.

[

Read:

Alexia Audrain designs hugging chair to comfort people with autism

](https://www.dezeen.com/2021/09/24/alexia-audrain-oto-hugging-chair/)

"This is going to be the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs," he said. "And so, to see what their concerns are today means that you get a little bit of a glimpse into the future. So I think from that point of view, it's really important to give students a platform."

Student work was also shown at Italian design and furniture fair Salone del Mobile for the first time this year, in the form of The Lost Graduation Show.

Other recent student projects featured on Dezeen include a printer that creates images from algae and therapeutic garments designed to help heal trauma.

Dubai Design Week is taking place on 8 to 13 November 2021 in Dubai. The Global Grad Show is showing online. SeeDezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

The post Global activism informs student projects at Dubai Design Week appeared first on Dezeen.

#products #all #design #studentprojects #graduates #dubaidesignweek #globalgradshow