Designed in Dubai

A design school, scholarships, internships, a ‘Designed in Dubai’ quality stamp are all part of the initial plans of the recently established Dubai Design and Fashion Council (DDFC).

The CEO of DDFC, Nez Gebreel, has ambitious plans for the organisation and the role that it will play in Dubai’s future growth. The plans were revealed at the first of a series of Urban Majlis, which was held in the car park of a luxury five-star hotel.

London-based French designer Roland Mouret, who has previously worked with Gabreel on the creation of fashion labels including Victoria Beckham, flew in from Istanbul for the panel discussion, moderated by myself. Also on the panel were Dubai-based Zayan Ghandour, founder of the Sauce Design empire; and Cyril Zammit, the visionary leader behind Dubai Design Days. The council will focus on all aspects of design, from the small corner atelier to architectural practices and beyond. The idea is to highlight the emirate as an attractive place from which to retail and promote designer wares and services – and to nurture and cultivate an indigenous design culture, recognising local talent. Having established itself as a regional capital for – among other industries – healthcare, finance, travel and retail, the goal is now to develop Dubai into a dynamic regional fashion hub.

Established in Bastakiya 25 years ago, Dubai’s Majlis Gallery was a centrepiece of the city at that time, offering a place for creative people to mix and mingle, and to savour the indigenous architecture present on the banks of the Dubai Creek. Today, a custom-designed design district – d3 – is being developed to take Dubai’s design ambitions to new heights. The DDFC will host regular Urban Design Majlis this year in a bid to bring the community together and to create a unified vision and voice for the future.

Creativity seems to be the buzzword for the New Year, following the decision to deem 2015 ‘the year of innovation’.

Khalid Al Shafar, the Emirati furniture designer and exhibition curator, has revealed his first fragrance. Al Shafar presented the contemporary Iranian candle to select members from the design community at his Ras Al Khor studio recently. The simple yet elegant candle, created in collaboration with a leading Turkish firm, is poised to go on sale early this year.

Meanwhile, the 7000-tonne, 180-metre-wide roof of the Louvre Abu Dhabi has been lifted onto its four main permanent piers using state-of-the-art technology. Using 32 custom-designed, remotely operated hydraulic jacks simultaneously, the lift is the first of its kind to be used in the world of construction for a permanent structure of this scale and size. Designed by Pritzker prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel, the dome of the museum, which was constructed over the course of 10 months, was originally built on top of 120 temporary towers that supported its weight during the construction process.

The concrete work has now almost been completed. A total of 34,000 tonnes of reinforcement steel has been used and over 21 million man-hours completed on-site. Located on the Saddiyat Cultural District, the museum is scheduled to be completed this year (2015).

Those heading to the 20th anniversary edition of Maison et Objet, running from 23 to 27 January, will be looking forward to seeing – among other things – the creations from Canadian-born Oki Sato, the show’s Designer of the Year 2015….

Wishing you all an inspirationally rich and rewarding New Year!