Exhale finds its home in Dubai
Here’s what to expect at the community event filled with art, poetry and selfreflection
What to expect from UAE entrepreneur Al Masri’s housewarming event tomorrow
You might have spotted one of Exhale’s pop-ups — or rather, ‘exhale’, a quieter stylisation of the word, mirrored backwards for effect — around the UAE, or maybe you walked past someone wearing one of their minimalist creations on the street.
The conceptual clothing brand, behind inspired T-shirts, hoodies and casual apparel, targets “misfits, dreamers, creators and doers”. It’s characterised by a clean black-and-white aesthetic, with the idea that ‘you bring the colour’.
Tomorrow, they’re officially marking their move into a permanent space — Kave, a sprawling, no frills upcyclingcafe in Alserkal Avenue, with plenty of breathing room for the Exhale community. Or, as founder Nawal Al Masri refers to them, ‘Exhalers’.
“Exhale is monochromatic, in the sense of black, white, grey,” explains Al Masri.
“We’re not here to make you follow a trend or say, ‘You have to be this, so you can be cool.’ Whatever colour you bring is acceptable. There’s no judgement.”
Al Masri founded Exhale in 2016 in hopes of building a community that allows people to be who they are.
“I’m Palestinian Lebanese. I was born in Montreal. I’ve been here [in the UAE] for 10 years. I studied journalism at the American University of Sharjah — this is where all the storytelling comes from,” she says.
The 29-year-old, who recently spoke at the first mental health awareness event at her alma mater, has given talks at both NAMA Women Advancement Establishment and UN Women.
“I really wanted female integration and female artists [to perform at Exhale’s event], which I’m finding hard to find,” she says. “I really hope female artists come forth and be
part of the community, because I don’t want an unbalanced ratio.”
Exhale, which had already been renting a 1x1 space at Kave for some time, made their move official in 2020.
At the housewarming, there will be live music, collaborative art and poetry.
And if the idea of hanging with the cool kids sounds intimidating, Al Masri has news for you: “Oh, my God, we are not cool!” she says, laughing.
“I mean, [Alserkal] could be the hip place to be, and that’s not something bad. But, there’s so much lack of judgement in that place. There’s so much community feel in Alserkal Avenue. In Kave, there’s so much downto-earth energy, so much homey vibes, that we really felt at home when we were there.”
“We hope Exhale can be that for everyone. It’s not a brand built for us. It’s a brand built for everyone. And that’s what we hope people understand.”
A COMMUNITY EVENT
Exhale’s event tomorrow at Kave has a strong artistic undercurrent, which comes as no surprise.
Over the past three years, the brand has made it its mission to mix fashion — made out of “natural, hand-picked materials [through] sustainable and holistic production methods” — with storytelling, including T-shirts that incorporate themes of emotion, mental health and, in case of their Palestine-themed collection, cultural identity.
Their merchandise carries both Arabic and English writings, from ‘My anxieties have anxieties’ (featured on their Peanuts collection at Virgin Megastores) to ‘Our land lives within us’.
“Without everyone’s presence and warmth, we wouldn’t be where we are today,” says Al Masri. “So we want to officialise that and celebrate with everyone.”