A week long celebration of design and ideas, the first ever Dubai Design Week 2015 will be held in partnership with Dubai Design District (d3) and will take place from October 26–31, 2015. Hoping to encourage growth of the design industry, exchange of ideas, and also provide a global meeting point for the international community, the event will see participation from countries not only in South East Asia but around the world. From the exhaustive list of events that will be taking place during the week, we’ve made a shortlist of 10 must-attend programmes for you – take your pick from a workshop by an LA street artist, or discover the art behind every groove of each letter of the Arabic alphabet.1. By the students: Curated by Brendan McGetrick, the Global Grad Show is the world’s first exhibition of innovative projects put up by the leading design schools around the world. The exhibition, with the core theme “exploring the future of technology”, will be divided into six categories: Construction, health, home, memory, play and work. 2. Welcoming talent: Abwab, which means “doors” in Arabic, is a series of six pavilions that will showcase exciting designs by studios and curators from six countries in MENASA (Middle East North Africa South Asia). One curator from each country will lead designers to create unique content under the theme “Games: The Element of Play in Culture”.3. Trading inspiration: Held under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice Chairman, Dubai Culture & Arts Authority, the first ever Downtown Design will provide trade professionals of Middle East an opportunity to discover high quality design from all over the world. 4. Catching them young: To teach children the basic principles of electricity, the Electro Dough Workshop will help children give life to their creation through electronics. The workshop is run in partnership with UK’s “Tech will Save Us”. 5. Cultural jamboree: The region’s best local and small artists, designers and culinary experts will showcase their work through activations, pop-ups and events at The Ripe Design Market. 6. Nothing’s ordinary: Watch everyday objects turn into stunning design pieces, through American multi-disciplinary artist Paige Smith’s unique hands-on craft workshop. Participants will be taught how to embellish ordinary items with handmade kirigami structures, and will be able to craft their very own sculptures. 7. Local hero talks: A lecture on Bernard Khoury will educate people about the projects of the Lebanese star architect. His work has been extensively published and his repertoire is renowned both locally and abroad.8. Something fishy: Interested in exploring the realms of product design, local product specialist Aljoud Lootah creates a geometric installation called Yaroof, inspired by the process of Yaroof fishing. It consists of four octagonal frames, each with patterns created by using nylon ropes to depict the shape and structure of a fishing net. 9. Word play: Indie type designer Lara Assouad will help you discover the icon/symbol potential of individual Arabic letter forms through modular abstraction. The basic rules of structure, proportion and repetition in Arabic letters will be explained by creating experimental modular letters using a limited number of simple shapes and elements based on a concept or idea.
10. Such a gem: Gafla Jewellery represents the rich heritage of the Gulf. The founders Abdulla BelJafla and Hamad Bin Shaiban aim to revive the region’s past through a contemporary take on fine jewellery through their exhibition, which will also house installations and display.
To register to any of the workshops mentioned above, click here What: Dubai Design WeekWhen: Oct 26–31, 2015Website: www.dubaidesignweek.ae
