Design Doha hosted a special event on Saturday (July 27), in partnership with the Italian DesignWanted magazine, to mark the conclusion of Arab Design Now and the biennial, inviting the public to take part in the celebrations and explore the exhibition before it closes on August 5.
The event began with a panel talk moderated by Patrick Abbattista, the chief executive of DesignWanted, a magazine exploring product trends and innovations, while connecting the design community on a global scale.
Materials’ Legacy: Products, Spaces, and Culture discussed how materials and culture have been interwoven for centuries, shaping what can be accomplished in both architecture and product design, and how it defines society.
Focusing on materials in the Mena (Middle East and North Africa) region, the discussion delved into their impact on the forms of expression from different points of view.
This session featured insights from Ali Karimi of Civil Architecture, and Turki Gazzaz and Abdulrahman Gazzaz of Brick Lab, a studio for architecture, design and experimental research based in Saudi Arabia.
Following the panel talk, there was a curated tour of Arab Design Now focusing on the materials used in certain objects in the exhibition.
The tour was followed by a networking event at Profiles Cafe.
“By hosting this closing event for Arab Design Now, we wanted to express our appreciation for all the spectacular contributions to this special exhibition and celebrate the talent, creativity, and innovation that brought it to fruition,” Design Doha deputy director Fahad al-Obaidly said in a statement. “We’d like to extend our sincerest thanks to DesignWanted for their continued support throughout the inaugural Design Doha, and their contribution to hosting what was a very special event–one that has already furthered the conversation around design in the region.”
Under the leadership of HE Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, Qatar Museums launched Design Doha, a biennial event celebrating excellence and innovation in design in Qatar and the Mena region, in February this year.
Curated by Rana Beiruti, Arab Design Now is a regional survey of more than 70 Arab designers, exploring contemporary and traditional design methods with a focus on sustainability.
This exhibition, highlighting the design aesthetics of the Levant, the Gulf, and North Africa, is currently on view at M7 in Msheireb, Doha’s centre for innovation and design, which hosted the inaugural Design Doha.
The event began with a panel talk moderated by DesignWanted chief executive Patrick Abbattista.
