Ever since Elie Saab’s couture exploded into the world’s consciousness in 2002, worn by the Oscar-winner Halle Berry, Middle Eastern fashion designers have been turning awards-season red carpets everywhere a brighter shade of bling. From pop divas to the grandest actresses, Saab and his regional fellows are now the top choice for their guaranteed adherence to the twin pillars of glamorous fashion: feminine silhouette and extravagant embellishment. Here is our pick of regional designers likely to appear in the forthcoming awards season.
Elie Saab
The granddaddy of Middle Eastern fashion, the much-loved Lebanese designer has cornered the market in form-fitting, eye-dazzling, camera-loving gowns. Not a red carpet goes by that does not bear a little of that Saab sparkle, with the most recent example being an understated 1950s-style wiggle dress worn by Lupita Nyong’o, the breakout star of Steve McQueen’s awards favourite, 12 Years a Slave, at the 25th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival Awards Gala earlier this month. In fact, this is an uncharacteristically pared-down look: his trademark beading and sequins are usually employed on full-length gowns, impeccably cut to create an hourglass shape, and glittering magically in the light of the camera flashes. There’s a reason Saab is one of the top red-carpet designers in the world.
Zuhair Murad
If Saab is the king of the red carpet, Zuhair Murad is its young prince, a little edgier, a little sexier and a little flashier. With clients ranging from Jennifer Lopez and Cameron Diaz to Taylor Swift, Murad turns out dramatic, high-octane frocks that put curves in the right places and use sheer panelling and beading to offer tantalising glimpses of the body beneath. With its feather-inspired appliqué and tulle skirt, Jennifer Lopez’s gold Cleopatra-style dress, worn at the 2013 Billboard Music Awards, is a Murad classic.
Reem Acra
She might have left Lebanon during the Civil War of the 1970s, but Reem Acra retained all the sense of glamour that seems inherent in the country’s designers. Now based in New York, Acra offers a touch of Carolina Herrera-style elegance and dignity in her designs, employing silhouette over embellishment for sophisticated, regal appeal. Her clients span the generations, with recent outings including Jane Fonda’s classic black tuxedo jumpsuit at the 17th Annual Hollywood Film Awards and Taylor Swift’s ethereal silvery white gown worn to the Winter Whites Gala in London.
Toujouri
The Gulf still has a way to go in matching up to Lebanon in red-carpet domination, but Qatar’s Toujouri is starting to be worn by stars local and global. The designer Lama El Moatassem’s gorgeously embellished kaftans are archetypally Arabian and often Florence Welch’s choice of flowing frock onstage, but El Moatassem’s more structured, embroidered princess-style pieces have been chosen by a number of young stars, including Sarah Hyland, Georgia King and Bip Ling.
Georges Hobeika
Another of Lebanon’s design-savvy diaspora, Georges Hobeika is now based in Paris and has for some time been picking up celebrity clients, thanks to his sophisticated take on Middle Eastern glamour. Still loving the hourglass curves, Hobeika has, on the whole, a simpler aesthetic with a slight retro edge – never losing that special Beirut glitz, though. Among his red-carpet clients are the likes of Eva Longoria, Annette Bening, Magida El Roumy and, recently, Katharine McPhee, who hit the spot with an icing-sugar-pink long skirt and appliquéd-lace top to the 2013 Creative Arts Emmy Awards.
Rami Al Ali
The UAE-based Syrian designer has long been the worst-kept secret of Dubai’s most glamorous women but, since starting to show his collection during Haute Couture Fashion Week in Paris, his distinctive, rigorous style has started to find international celebrity clients from Ivanka Trump to Kelly Osbourne and Chanel Iman, who donned a fabulous taupe beaded-tulle and chiffon high-necked gown for the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in 2013. Rather than the organic, floral embellishments of many of the Middle Eastern red-carpet showings, his pieces feature intricate geometric patterns and figure-hugging construction, though the rich silks, metallics and flowing chiffons make them perfect camera fodder for awards season.
Georges Chakra
Inevitably, more Lebanese designers start to follow in the footsteps of Saab and Murad, and Georges Chakra is one who has proved very popular among American stars for his strong sense of colour, painterly print and graphic simplicity. He’s versatile, certainly, able to go as bling as the best of them, while turning out edgy little cocktail dresses for the music crowd. And although the use of bright hues is a distinguishing trait, one of his most successful moments this year has been Kelly Rowland’s black gown, worn to the Grammys, which combines a pneumatic silhouette with sharp, art-deco-style cut-outs.
