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| design house . 2013 |
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| details in the fabric 1 . 2013 |
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| details in the fabric 2 . 2013 |
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| details in the fabric 3 . 2013 |
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| details in the fabric 4 . 2013 |
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| details in the fabric 5 . 2013 |
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| details in the fabric 6 . 2013 |
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| details in the fabric exhibition at sikka . 2013 |
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| details in the fabric exhibition at sikka . 2013 |
| details in the fabric exhibition at sikka . 2013 |
for last month's sikka art fair, i was one of six exhibiting designers participating in an amazing initiative titled 'design house'. conceived by two of the most inspiring graphic designers i know; hadeyeh & hala of mobius design studio, i was invited to push myself & work outside my comfort zone to create a new project for the initiative. along with myself & the mobius girls, there were layan attari, nada al yafaei, talin & tulip hazbar, who all created unique individual projects on the theme of preservation.
the design house, situated in cozy house number 53, included an exhibition that showcased each of the participant's works, ranging from typography to illustration, to archiving and architecture. a series of workshops were also held, recreating techniques used in producing the exhibited works. & a closing feast to mark the end of all our efforts was held, to meet, eat, converse & interact.
for the exhibition, my project 'details in the fabric' contextualized the opposing themes of preservation and deterioration, based
on living in a society that struggles with juggling to preserve
traditions/culture with modern lifestyles. the technique used in creating this series involved screen
printing contrasting visuals onto pre-existing fabrics obtained from dubai’s traditional fabric souqs. these vibrant textiles are commonly used in tailoring traditional garments for men and/or women in the emirates, with geometric shapes
or organic motifs adorned as patterns. the silkscreened graphics allowed for
another visual layer onto these fabrics; communicating the conflict between the
two previously mentioned ideas through abstract and/or literal themed illustrations. visitors at the house were able to
observe the details of the visuals on the fabrics and absorb the varied
narratives communicated through these pieces.
overall, the design house was a brilliant experience. working alongside awesome like-minded designers reminded me of the fun times as a design student in college. creating these pieces definitely fed into my creative process when working on projects, & definitely pushed me to create a different aesthetic which i loved. the project also gave the opportunity to contribute to other initiatives; by creating or contributing related pieces for other projects, including place mats which were sold at this year's dxb store & a contribution to this year's art4sight auction to raise funds (fingers crossed) for noor dubai's fight against blindness.
for more information on design house at this year's sikka, & what comes next (we hope), stay tuned here & here.
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| design house peeps . 2013 |
before ending this, a few thank you's are in order. to my design house girls - thank you for making me be a part of this initiative. i hope we continue to work together in the near future. thank you for making me laugh, cry, frustrated & loved during this experience. i hope you're proud of me, as i am proud of each & every one of you. this is something i will always remember. love you all.
thank you sikka for accepting design house as a part of the fair programme, & accepting my project too.
a final, special thank you goes to my friend salama for helping out when she had a lot on her plate, & giving her all to make sure my project was ready on time. thank you & much love.
