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In our in-depth reviews of the fairs that are drawingcrowds this autumn in Istanbul, London, Paris,Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Beirut, Canvas looks at thecutting-edge art and designs, the changing natureof the fair circuit, and the possible impact on creative industries in the region and beyond.
ART, DESIGN, TEMPORALITY AND CHANGING CULTURAL LANDSCAPES
Contemporary Istanbul and the city’s biennialFrieze London and Frieze MastersAbu Dhabi ArtFIAC ParisArt & Design fairs in BeirutDubai Design WeekSkulptur Projekte Münster
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Monica Bonvicini. 2017. Hamam. 15th Istanbul Biennial. Image courtesy of Istanbul Biennial. The artist and Mitchell-Innes & Nash, New York. Photography by Sahir Ugur Eren
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While Dubai is relatively young on the design scene, having only launched its first platform six years ago with Design Days, a fair focusing on limited edition furniture and collectibles, it now boasts three yearly events that include Dubai Design Week and its trade arm, Downtown Design, which are both regional and international in scope. Laura Egerton tells us what to expect this year, after speaking with key players in the third edition of Dubai Design Week.
DESIGN BOOM
“There is something distinctive about a design
week,” says William Knight, new Head of Design for the Art Dubai Group, at
a press briefing for the third annual Dubai Design Week (DDW) which runs
this November. Dubai may have an edge over other global cities because
of d3, a purpose-built destination for design, which acts as the central hub
for the event. With new sites on the waterfront and a record number of
installations across the district, d3 will be brimming with activity.
In its first two editions, Abwab, the showcase for regional design, presented
country-specific curated pavilions. This time it has a more experimental
structure, its final selection of 45 designs from 15 countries were sourced
using the design domino concept, where one designer nominated another.
It proved popular. One participant, Ali Shawwa, says: “The selection process
sparked an unpredictable and unique network within creative communities
across the region.” Shawwa will be exhibiting an evocative piece in ceramic
entitled The Gossipers, a trio of crumpled forms which seem to interact, the
clear glaze enhancing the naturally grainy properties of the clay, symbolic
of sand dunes.
Ali Shawwa. Gossipers Sculptures. Ceramic, 7 sculptures each, approximately 20 cm x 20 cm x 16 cm. At Abwab.
Image courtesy of the designer
Paul Matter. Tango III. Buff brass with buff brass details and dual tone brass domes. At Abwab. Image courtesy of the designer
Anjali Srinivasan. Quiver Vessels. Silicon, varies 12-30cm. At Abwab. Image courtesy of the designer
Soukaina Aziz El Idrissi. Chemistry’s Greatest Achievement: Black/Blue/Orange/Yellow. Low Density Polyethylene, Plexiglass, LEDs, 132 x 73 x 7.5 cm. At Abwab. Image courtesy of the designer
Jassim Alnashmi. Culture Cross. Cherry wood, woven cane, rattan, 50 x 54 x 132 cm. At Abwab. Image courtesy of the designer
DUBAI DESIGN WEEK
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At times it’s rethinking the traditional elements and techniques that
makes a design fresh. Nikhil Paul of Paul Matter Studio speaks of their debut
collection TANGO being born from a playful experiment with vintage lighting
components. The Kuwaiti furniture designer Jassim Alnashmi, who presents
a beautiful wooden chair with stitching reminiscent of a musical instrument
or handmade boat, is another case in point, although he mentions that
traditional craft needs to remain relevant via the latest technologies.
This is advice that Emirati designer Khalid Shafar has taken on board, as
he presents the ambitious Silent Call, a project done in collaboration with
LASVIT. This kinetic light installation signals the five daily calls to prayer
in an eloquent example of making tradition more accessible and up to
date. Though Silent Call is adaptable to any customised schedule, Islamic
architecture is the visual anchor, the surface a sequence of 60 glass domes
taken from five mosques. Shafar’s approach to design has always been
through experience, emotion and storytelling. Working with movement
was a natural transition for him. “Light is connected to time and city zones,”
he says. “We use alarm clocks, but why not create an indication through light
instead. The project then shifts from pure audio to visual movement, from
being an object to an experience that integrates all your senses.”
Alongside homegrown talent are internationally known brands and
experts, such as Paula Zuccotti, an ethnographer and trend forecaster in
global consumption, who brings Everything We Touch: a 24-hour Inventory
of our lives to DDW, an object-based sensual journey through our daily
interactions. Other commissioned installations include the monumental
work Prologue, presented by Swarovski with Fredrikson Stallard. The trade
fair Downtown Design doubles in size this year, offering a Portuguese
Pavilion for the first time, together with many Middle Eastern debuts for
international design brands such as Vondom.
Salma Lahlou, curator of Iconic City – previous editions were on Beirut
and Cairo – has gone for a narrative, exploratory approach this year, having
commissioned the illustrator Aicha El Beloui to translate her native city of
Casablanca into a graphic mural landscape. Here, snippets of the city’s life
and history will be told via sound art, film, photography and weaving.
Also drawing from the urban framework is the collaborative design studio
Apical Reform in the form of a new sculpture that is inspired by #mydubai,
an open call to create a social media biography of the city. “Design should be
democratic – its first call, apart from function, should be that it is seen,” says
founder and principal Amrish Patel. “Public art also connects the community”.
Their Sonuslexica installation was a hit at Design Days in March and this
month sees the launch of AR Gallery in d3 with State of the Earth, a curated
collection of designs addressing global warming and climate change.
There are plenty of other DDW projects offering interesting, eco-friendly
architectural solutions, such as BETTair-House by SUPERFUTUREDESIGN*,
demonstrating the importance of clean air to healthy lifestyles.
These forward-looking trends are most discernible in the designs
showcased at Global Grad Show this year, where 200 innovative projects by students from 90 universities are presented as a barometer of today’s design
climate. “It’s the breadth of it all that’s fascinating,” explains curator Brendan
McGetrick. “On one hand you can experience an absolute future that isn’t
even available yet, while on the other you see proposals to improve traditional
ways of life with tasks that can be done in a healthier, more efficient way. You
are spanning many centuries in the subject matter that the students are
responding to.” Due to outreach, there are more regional schools than in
previous years. From the projects that seek to preserve heritage, there’s The
Loss of Words by Basma El-Naggar from Cairo, an online space for preserving
languages that are in danger of disappearing. Reuse is a common theme, an
important aspect of sustainability being the reactivation of resources that
are not being used effectively. Examples come from opposite sides of the
globe. Guma is a set of household objects created from discarded tyres by
a student from Mexico, where 91 per cent of old tyres are abandoned. The
Waterfront Tanks by Badih Rameh from Lebanon uses vacated oil silos to
create alternative public spaces. Experimental approaches to architectural
techniques emerge from students at Politecnico, Milan (a new addition this
year), such as Trabecular Tectonics from Roberto Naboni, co-founder of the
Architecture Computation and Technology Laboratory (ACTLAB), which
proposes a lightweight system that mimics nature’s evolutionary approach
to design – such as the structure of our bones.
It’s particularly timely for architectural practice to be high on the agenda
in Dubai. Alserkal Avenue sees the launch of the first Architectural Biennale
next year, previewing as ARCH.SEASON and spearheaded by SVENM. At
Concrete’s warehouse space, While We Wait by Palestinian architects and
designers Elias and Yousef Anastas will be set up. Commissioned by the
Victoria and Albert Museum, it is a poignant example of how a structure can
represent the plight of a people. DDW’s keynote speaker is David Adjaye,
whose unique approach to architecture has always had a social agenda.
With major architectural practices committing to offices in Dubai and
plans for Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation taking shape, DDW is a
welcome moment to consolidate, brainstorm and showcase current trends.
As Tariq Khayyat, the head of the Middle East for Zaha Hadid Architects, tells
us, “DDW effectively encourages the sharing of knowledge and creativity to
promote innovation and growth within the city’s creative industry.”
Dubai Design Week runs from 13-18 November and Downtown Design runs from 14-17 November in d3, Dubai’s design district.
Ota Svoboda for Bomma. SOAP. Hand-blown crystal with coating silver stainless steel fitting. At Downtown Design. Image courtesy of the desginer. Photography by Salim Issa
Lasvit, Khalid Shafar. Silent Call. A kinetic light installation. At Dubai Design Week / Around the City. Image courtesy of the designer and Lasvit
Apical Reform. Locoma. Wood and steel, matte finish credenza, 75 x 160 x 60 cm. At Dubai Design Week. Image courtesy of Apical Reform
Zineb Arraki. Diptych. 2017. For Iconic City 2017. Loading...Casa.
Image courtesy of the artist
Zineb Arraki. Diptych. 2017. For Iconic City 2017. Loading...Casa.
Image courtesy of the artist
Badih Rameh. The Waterfront Tanks. Notre Dame University - Louaize,
Lebanon. For the Global Grad Show.Image courtesy of the designer
Roberto Naboni. Trabecular Tectonics. ACTLAB at Politecnico di Milano.
For the Global Grad Show.Image courtesy of the designer
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