Business & Money | Wednesday 14 November, 2018 6:39 am |

Under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice Chairman of Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), the Emirate's dedicated entity for culture, arts, heritage, and literature, is participating in the fourth edition of Dubai Design Week, the Middle East and South Asia’s only collectible design fair, which will be held from 12 – 17  November at Dubai Design District.

Taking place at locations across the city, this year’s programme will be the most comprehensive to date with more than 120 companies participating and 230 events taking place, encompassing exhibitions, commissioned installations, awards and competitions, talks, and workshops, as well as tours and experiences for design enthusiasts and public visitors alike.

Saeed Al Nabouda, Acting Director General at Dubai Culture, commented:  “Our support of Dubai Design Week for the fourth consecutive year comes in line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to encourage the growing cultural movement in the UAE and highlight it on the cultural and creative landscape. Through our relationship with this event, we are contributing to Dubai’s status as the world's first design city in the Middle East within UNESCO's Creative Cities. The festival is one of many events in which we take pride in supporting the growing cultural and artistic landscape in the Emirate to achieve our vision and enhance Dubai’s position as a global, creative, and sustainable international city for culture, arts, heritage, and literature.”

Al Nabouda added: “This year, we decided to commission Abdalla Al Mulla, an Emirati artist and architect who has attended multiple exhibitions and whose exceptional creative process is ever-evolving, to design our stand in the event and display his work of art ‘Shak’l’, which reinforces our mission to support and develop young creative talents and create opportunities for them.”

Fulfilling Dubai Culture’s mandate to establish the Emirate as a global hub for design, Emirati Architect/Designer and Founder of MULA Abdalla Al Mulla has been selected to design the Dubai Culture stand. Abdalla has participated in major international exhibitions such as London Design Fair 18' and Milan Design 18' as part of UAE Design Stories Exhibition where he was selected as one of the Emirati designers to display their work. He also participated in Paris Design Week 18' with his piece ‘Mese,’ ZERO, Dubai Design Week 16' with ‘Intrinsic Flux,’ and in Dubai Design Week 17' in collaboration with Emirati Jewelry brand GAFLA to create an experiential installation for visitors.

Since its launch in 2015, Dubai Design Week has become a pivotal occasion that provides visitors with an ambitious and comprehensive showcase of international and regional design. The event brings Dubai to life with an exciting agenda of keynote speeches, panel discussions, public performances, educational workshops, and experiential installations across the city. This year, even visitors to Burj Khalifa — the world’s tallest building — will become part of the event’s widening scope.

Dubai Culture aims to enhance Dubai’s cultural scene and draw attention to the UAE’s rich heritage. The Authority’s mandate is to build bridges of constructive dialogue between different civilisations and cultures to enhance Dubai's position as a creative and sustainable global city for culture, heritage, arts, and literature, with the aim to empower these sectors by developing creative and innovative projects and initiatives locally, regionally, and globally.