Dubai Design and Fashion Council announced this week that it will be hosting Dubai Design Week in October.
Although it will coincide with the city’s Downtown Design fair, the week-long event is aimed at involving the public across the city in a number of events.
“We really want to make it an inclusive rather than an exclusive event,” says Nez Gebreel, CEO of the Dubai Design and Fashion Council. “It will be activated across the city and it is not just about the commercial aspects but it will support local and regional talent as well as have a huge focus on education.”
Established by Art Dubai Group (ADG), in partnership with d3, Dubai Design Week will feature some of the most innovative projects coming from postgraduates of the world’s leading design universities. It will also see the launch of ‘Destination Dubai’, a alliance with six international design weeks whereby emerging brands from the participating countries will be given exposure at Downtown Design.
Dubai Design Week’s first edition will also mark the launch of the ‘Abwab’ initiative, as part of which emerging and established talent from participating countries will have their work showcased in individual pavilions designed by Loci Architecture and Design, a UAE-based architecture firm. Made from locally sourced materials, the pavilions will be integrated into the walkways and open spaces of d3. A unifying concept will generate the design theme each year, with 2015’s theme being ‘Games: The Element of Play in Culture.’ This year’s showcase will be dedicated to designers from Jordan, Kuwait, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and the UAE.
Dubai Design Week will offer a programme of educational talks, lectures and workshops related to design.
To ensure the industry is sustainable, Gebreel also underlined again the importance of education.
“We need to focus on the grassroots,” she says. “Educating the community in terms of design does not just start with designers. We need to start with the schools and parents. We will be working on year round activities with the KHDA and we are talking to universities.”
She also confirmed that large scale installations will also appear around the city, which will capture the imagination of the public.
* Dubai Design Week will take place from October 26-31. For more information visit the new website - www.dubaidesignweek.ae
