Emirati woman brings fresh eye to brochure design

A job with a prestigious employer was only the beginning for Dhabia Al Rumaithi, a designer whose work has redefined the corporate identity of a major business, Ramona Ruiz reports.

Dhabia Al Rumaithi, graphic designer at Adma-Opco, carries great responsibility in creating a broad media and corporate look for the government-owned company. Mona Al Marzooqi / The National

ABU DHABI // The newspaper and magazine advertisements, brochures and design themes of an Abu Dhabi government company are the handiwork of an Emirati designer.

Dhabia Al Rumaithi, 29, develops creative ideas and concepts from a design brief, bringing a fresh perspective to an established design.

“I love my job because I’m able to express my creativity,” she said. “I design our company’s announcements, reports, newsletters, e-cards, newspaper advertisements, while I also do a variety of design work for different displays and exhibitions here and abroad.”

In 2012, Ms Al Rumaithi landed a job at the Abu Dhabi Marine Operating Company (Adma-Opco), a major producer of oil and gas from offshore Abu Dhabi.

“I had two to three job interviews but I chose Adma because of the work environment, and it’s under the Adnoc group, one of the world’s leading oil companies.”

Last year, she designed Adnoc’s advertisement that appeared on the Offshore Technology Conference newsletter. Copies of the publication were distributed at the conference and exhibition held in Houston, Texas.

“For inspiration, I research the internet, read magazines and books, visit places and spent some quiet time alone,” she said.

Working around an established design and company’s colour palette presented its own challenges, she said.

“For instance, our managers would like me to stick to the colours - dark blue - something related to marine environment but I want to introduce new colours, to have more creativity in the design,” she said. “I love to express my ideas and be part of the creative process.”

But she is given some creative freedom and leeway for certain projects.

“It largely depends on the project I’m working on,” she said. “I would introduce something new to the design, without compromising the personality and the nature of the organisation.

Ms Al Rumaithi is proud of the Innovation Award book she designed last year.

“The design should be powerful and it should be something new as it’s all about innovation,” she said. “I chose a lemon-green colour and came up with a modern design. For overseas exhibitions, I ensure that the UAE’s culture and heritage are highlighted and incorporated into the design.”

Ms Al Rumaithi, who has a degree in applied media and communications, favours the use of more images and less text. The aim is to reduce clutter, keeping the design simple.

“Proper alignment of text and images is very critical to the design,” she said.

The mother-of-two works 7am to 3pm but does not mind working beyond regular hours.

She was kept busy by the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference in November and last month’s World Future Energy Summit.

Ms Al Rumaithi now is preparing for two upcoming major exhibitions and conferences in the UAE and abroad, the ABILITIESme 2015 in Abu Dhabi next month, and the Offshore Technology Conference in Texas in May.

At an early age, Ms Al Rumaithi loved designing clothes and has her eye on fashion school.

“I would like to attend fashion design workshops and one day set up my own shop,” she said. “At the moment, I feel graphic design suits me more and I plan to take additional courses to improve my skills.”