Dubai Design Week 2021: Downtown Design
After presenting a hybrid format in 2020, Downtown Design returned to its d3 waterfront venue showcasing luxurious design from local and international brands during Dubai Design Week.
Showcasing over 130 leading international and regional brands from 25 different countries during Dubai Design Week, Downtown Design made a vibrant return to the city’s Design District as the Middle East’s foremost fair. With programmes and installations showing local and international talent, the fair and greater design week was the first major opportunity for brands in the region to exhibit works in person since the global pandemic. See below just a few highlights from this year’s inspiring and innovative showcase.
Tanween by Tashkeel
Celebrating a decade of development and support of UAE-based designers, Tashkeel presented the latest sustainable product outcomes of its Tanween design programme.
Design pieces on display including the The Kapok Series by Tasim Tinawi, Taht Al Ghaf lights by Khawla Al Balooshi, the Sehra cabinet by Eman Shafiq, the SEEDS seriesottoman/table and bag by Nuhayr Zein, as well as Yereed by Lina Ghalib, Liminal series table by Hala Al Ani and Katta by Yara Habib.
The programme nurtures the UAE design aesthetic through a range of commercially available, limited-edition pieces inspired by, designed and manufactured in the UAE. These furniture and lighting pieces integrate traditional crafts and contemporary design practice, often using innovative applications of traditional materials and techniques that are integral to the UAE identity.
DesignKraft
DesignKraft is a prominent and innovative Dubai-based designer that creates a wide range of fun, useful, and eco-friendly furniture, lighting, and various other items for modern living spaces. All of their products are made in the UAE, focusing on local production and sustainability through their dedicated Design for Life program. This program allows clients to easily refresh or recycle any piece that has been designed by them, promoting a circular economy. As a leading designer in the UAE furniture market, the brand places a strong emphasis on high-quality craftsmanship and maintains a unique design vision that sets their offerings apart. In addition to their diverse collections, DesignKraft also welcomes custom orders and select commercial projects, ensuring top quality and attention to detail in every job they undertake.
Arijian
Recognising the physical properties of mother-of-pearl and diversifying the perspective in which they’re seen, artist Jian Yoo embodies the mother-of-pearl’s materialistic presence with her formative language through the use of various media, such as painting, objects, and art furniture. Her works incorporate contrasting elements, like ideal-reality and tradition-modern, resulting in diverse perspectives found somewhere between varying environments and cultures. Made of thousands and thousands of mother-of-pearl pieces, her art reveals a kind of brilliance that is only realized when the small glimmers of light come together as a whole. Her line of work contains condensed layers of time, from the flow of time that the natural material embraces to the depth of time experienced through the long journey walked by master craftsmen who work alongside the artist.
Spanish Institute for Foreign Trade (ICEX) / “Interiors From Spain”
Interiors from Spain is an important initiative organised by ICEX Spain Trade and Investment, a dedicated government agency focused on promoting exceptional design from Spain. This encompasses a wide variety of products, including quality furniture, lighting solutions, textiles, tiles, kitchen and bath fittings, luxurious rugs, and decorative accessories that reflect the country's rich cultural heritage. For its fifth consecutive year, Interiors from Spain commissioned the talented Kristina Brateng from the local B8 Architecture studio to design a captivating Spanish oasis for this year’s fair, which featured stunning and high-quality surfaces from the renowned Cosentino Group, showcasing the best of Spanish craftsmanship and design.
ARE
ARE fuses tradition and modernity with a creative twist, serving as a unique reminder of our collective yesterdays while embodying a promise of brighter tomorrows. Amongst a playful and dynamic collision of diverse materials, intricate patterns, and vibrant colours, there is an exciting interplay of repetition and exploration that exists between the traditional and the contemporary. The brand exhibited an impressive range of unique pieces during the fair, showcasing everything from ‘pixelated’ furniture that seamlessly blends sculpture and functional design, to artistic mirrors that invite viewers to see and experience more than just a simple reflection.
The Line Concept
The Line Concept is a specialised furniture design studio with well-equipped production facilities based in the vibrant city of Dubai. A talented in-house team of skilled artisans meticulously handcrafts each of their pieces. The stunning designs featured at this year’s stand are complemented by striking lines of steel, available in brass and a range of captivating colours, creatively exploring the theme of illusionary detail, embodying the concept of a Continuum. Brass trims and exquisite marbles not only enhance the aesthetic appeal but also significantly elevate the intricate details of each piece, ultimately resulting in unique combinations that harmonise neutral and bold colours.
Zieta
Zieta Studio is a highly innovative multidisciplinary team comprised of talented architects, designers, engineers, and technologists working collaboratively. The studio’s unique creations include a diverse range of out-of-the-ordinary objects, captivating public sculptures, and functional collectable forms that truly deceive the senses with their strikingly unusual shapes and exceptional qualities. The brand takes great pride in the extensive research and innovative experiments they undertake with various metals, and the inflated steel objects crafted using the advanced FiDU technology have rightfully become the studio’s flagship design, showcasing their commitment to pushing the boundaries of design and material.
For more information regarding the upcoming fair, its latest editions, and the broader design week activities and events, please click the links provided below to visit the official websites for detailed insights and updates.
