Abwab translates as ‘doors’ in Arabic and is an annually remodeled exhibition dedicated to commissioning work from across the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia with a purpose to promote design talent and stimulate information exchange, uniquely experienced at Dubai Design Week.

As Dubai continues to establish itself as a global meeting point for the international design community, it has the responsibility to perform as a leader in supporting regional design. By summoning key players to collaborate and present opportunities for cultural exchange, Abwab acts as a recurring point of intersection for talents from the region and audiences. 171 designers have participated to date.

For its fifth edition, Abwab designers were challenged to recreate the local classrooms of their cultures, designers from India, the Eastern Provinces of Saudi Arabia, and Lebanon engaged audiences with representations of this year’s theme ‘ways of learning’. Audiences had the opportunity to interact with each pavilion as a gathering space for people to experience the making of memory, and to explore the way information is shared and taught in the respective cultures, by design.

Learn more about each pavilion: