- Oct 31, 2023
- 5 min read

Tashkeel's Tanween Programme Celebrates a Decade of Creativity at Dubai Design Week 2023

I Tashkeel's Tanween Programme Celebrates a Decade of Creativity at Dubai Design Week 2023

Four new designs to be unveiled at Downtown Design (November 8-11), highlighting sustainable design conceived, created and commercially available in the UAE

Tanween by Tashkeel

The Tanween Design Programme is an intensive and competitive annual initiative for designers, artists, engineers, and scientists living and working in the UAE. The program guides participants through research, material experimentation, and mentoring, resulting in the creation of innovative, functional designs made in the UAE. Tanween, led by UAE-based and international design professionals, culminates in the unveiling of sustainable and functional products at Dubai Design Week.

Tashkeel – a leading proponent of creativity and innovation – will celebrate a decade of incubating design projects in the UAE through its Tanween design programme, unveiling four new works that have been conceived, created and will now be commercially available at Downtown Design during Dubai Design Week 2023 from November 7-12.

Taking centrestage at Downtown Design are the four new sustainable furniture and lighting pieces developed by the latest Tanween cohort: Marwa Abdelrahim, an Abu Dhabi-based architect; Wafa Al Falahi, an Emirati multidisciplinary designer; Chinara Darwish, a former mechanical engineer from Kazakhstan, and Maryam Elattar (a ceramic artist) and Mohamed Elnaggar (an electrical engineer), both from Egypt.

Since its inception in 2014, Tanween has trained 36 early-career design professionals, resulting in 49 original furniture and lighting designs both developed and manufactured in the Emirates. Today, 23 of these limited-edition pieces are offered to collectors through Tashkeel's furniture and lighting series, The Tanween Collection.

"Tashkeel’s Tanween Design Programme empowers emerging designers to embark on a journey of innovation, guided by a passionate team of design professionals and local manufacturers and makers. With a decade of learning and a range of products now available to collectors, our program has cultivated original, sustainable pieces that underscore the creativity and capability to produce these works right here in the UAE," said Lisa Ball-Lechgar, Deputy Director at Tashkeel.

While the forms of the four new Tanween works will be officially revealed during Dubai Design Week, all the designers and their pieces share a common focus on sustainability of materials and the production process, especially pertinent as the UAE prepares to host COP28 in late November.

The Mishkah Collection by Marwa Abdelrahim combines traditional lighting techniques from the UAE with 3D printing, incorporating clay as a sustainable material. Wafa Al Falahi’s Roots lighting design pays tribute to her Emirati women ancestors through a combination of steel and biodegradable plastic materials infused with henna. Chinara Darwish used 100 per cent locally sourced, marine industry and construction waste sourced from redundant marine marker buoys, dredging floats, road barriers and water tanks to develop her dining table design, The Alchemy Series that celebrates hospitality and family. The shelving unit/standing desk Doroob, developed by Maryam Elattar & Mohamed Elnaggar, is a triumph of the circular economy, made from reclaimed materials from the UAE’s construction and infrastructure sector as well as pottery studios.

A Decade of Creativity and Impact: Tanween’s Tenth Edition

In addition to unveiling its latest Tanween cohort at Dubai Design Week, Tashkeel celebrates a decade of design innovation through a series of workshops on Thursday & Friday 9-10 November at the Art Jameel pop-up space in the heart of Dubai Design District to advise emerging designers on issues including commercial licensing, intellectual property protection as well as processes, materials and production aspects of the Made-in-UAE design movement. On Friday 10 November, the Tashkeel initiative Make Works UAE is offering a guided bus tour on of manufacturers, fabricators and suppliers in Al Quoz, while the Tashkeel Makerspace Al Serkal Avenue hosts an Open Day of workshops including printmaking, RISOgraph printing and bookbinding.

Cultivating the UAE’s design landscape

Tanween's impact extends to supporting UAE design as a social enterprise. All profits from The Tanween Collection sales contribute to the development of local design, benefiting alumni and future participants of the Tanween Design Programme, Tashkeel's premier training initiative for talented UAE-based designers. Notably, the collection has launched sell-out works Moza by Studio MUJU and The Braided Series chair by Lateefa Saeed, designs that blend traditional craftsmanship with contemporary aesthetics, reflecting the essence of Emirati culture.

A pledge to the environment

Additionally, Tanween has been committed to sustainability since its seventh edition in 2020, resulting in the creation of highly sustainable furniture and lighting designs, including those by Reema Al Mheiri, Huda Al Aithan, Sara Abu Farha & Khaled Shalkha, Nuhayr Zein, Khawla Al Balooshi, and Lina Ghalib. These designs exemplify innovative and environmentally responsible approaches, aligning with a vision of a sustainable future. Each piece features an innovative material sourced from the UAE natural environment and developed in partnership with local scientists and fabricators. The materials includes datecrete, leukeather, plypalm, fishscale moulds and ghaf wood. More information can be found at www.tashkeel.org or via social media channels.

Tashkeel

Tashkeel is a commercial consultancy with studio incubators for visual art & design rooted in the United Arab Emirates. Established in Dubai in 2008 by Sheikha Lateefa bint Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Tashkeel's facilities enable production, experimentation and discourse. Its annual programme of training, residencies, workshops, talks, exhibitions, international collaborations and publications aims to further practitioner development, public engagement and lifelong learning. And its commercial services seek to embed UAE-made art and design in the very fabric of society and the economy. By nurturing the growth of contemporary art and design, Tashkeel seeks to empower the country's ever growing creative and cultural industries.

Tashkeel’s commercial services include Consultancy, ranging from advisory, sales, design and production services and special projects for a wide range of clients; Training, the development and delivery of art-based learning for the education, cultural, public and private sectors; Membership, providing comprehensive access for the creative community to facilities and studios to research, experiment, make and collaborate; and Printing & Cutting Services of laser-cutting, fine art/photography & risograph printing; and Retail, selling UAE-made art and design products instore and online as well as across a nationwide network of partners.

Tashkeel’s incubator initiatives include: Tanween, which takes a cohort of UAE-based designers through a one-year skills development programme, taking a product inspired by the UAE from concept to completion; Critical Practice, which invites visual artists to embark on a one-year skills development programme of studio practice, mentorship and training, culminating in a major solo presentation; Residencies at Tashkeel or abroad, ranging in duration and often in partnership with international partners; Make Works UAE, an online platform connecting creatives and fabricators to enable designers and artists accurate and efficient access to the UAE manufacturing sector; Exhibitions & Fairs to highlight innovation and excellence, growing audience for art & design in the UAE.

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