Conducted in a pop-up studio, which offers a five-day programme of workshops and activities for all ages, the programme, under the title Making Space has something for everyone.
From mastering the traditional arts of the UAE to innovative ways of using recycled material as well as getting to grips with 21st-century technology, the diversity of workshops at Dubai Design Week is as rich as it is varied.
Every day will begin with a session conducted by thejamjar where visitors will be invited to build a sensory rug from recycled designer textiles and materials. There is also a three-day course run by Takbir Fatima from DesignAware about 3D design thinking. Fractals combine logic, geometry, natural systems and structure and focuses on local materials such as palm leaves. At the end of the three days, the participants’ installations will be displayed at the Making Space.
Other than the ongoing workshops, each day features a plethora of varied events. On the first day, learn from UAE-based creative duo Hattie Fox and Amaia Chaplin from Fine Blooms, who will host sessions on flower arranging and bouquet-making and don’t miss Ola Dajani, a textile artist who uses embroidery to make imaginary anthropomorphic animals and dolls. Her three-hour workshop will delve into contemporary embroidery and draw inspiration from a pool of design techniques. In the evening, Asna Moazzam will host a one-hour live demo of Sa’af, the ancient Emirati technique of weaving with date palm leaves and participants will learn the process of preparing the leaves and dying them with colours before using them.
The next day begins with a session from Dubai-based pottery studio Yadawei on the ins-and-outs of how to create a ceramic sphere and also features a workshop teaching the basics of Islamic geometrical design with the Alserkal Cultural Foundation.
Thursday includes sessions on the most innovative ways to get creative. Learn about upcycling, colour, and bicycles with the Charicycles who take old and disused bike frames and customise them and go for a ‘design fiction’ workout with design organisation, Palmwood.
Over the weekend, and with an emphasis on learning for all the family, sessions include montage design and collage making. There is also a master class in urban sketching for all skill levels bought to you by Urban Sketchers Dubai. This workshop explains the technique of ‘catching air’ – or adding depth to an image by working with tone and perspective – a skill that Renaissance artists worked hard to master. Sketchers of any skill level will be shown how to use clever composition to add life and activity to their work.
Find the full schedule of eventshere.