Goethe-Institut Gulf Region to present the first joint collection by designers from Dubai and Berlin at fashion show
Dubai, 17 January 2012_ The joint fashion collection “Dubai-Berlin Fashion Fusion” of eight young designers from Dubai and Berlin will be presented on the 23rd January 2012 at a fashion show focussing on fashion influenced by both cities. The event that will start at 8pm will be held at The Pavilion Downtown Dubai is organised by the Goethe-Institut German Language Center Dubai, liaison office of the Goethe-Institut Gulf Region, and is part of the 2nd Berlin-Dubai Festival, which took place in October/November 2011. An integral part of the Festival was the “Young Designers’ Fashion Exchange Project” that included the designers, who will present their joint work at the upcoming fashion show.
In the context of the exchange programme, the Emirati designers Khulood Thani, Maryam Selaich and Madeyya Almazroie and the Dubai based German-Egyptian designer Mona Fares visited Berlin in order to meet young fashion innovators from the German capital and gain first-hand insight into their work. In return, four fashion design students from Esmod Berlin International University of Art for Fashion, Lena Braatz, Sophie Boehmert, Marina Hoermanseder and Anna Wilhelmi, travelled to Dubai to be introduced to the Emirati fashion design scene during the Berlin-Dubai Festival 2011. This close exchange of views on fashion brought to the creation of a joint collection by the eight young designers.
The collection offers not only an insight into the designers’ personal style but it also mirrors both cities’ individual style and tries to link their history with traditions, values and visionary concepts. According to Friederike Moeschel, Director of Goethe-Institut German Language Center Dubai, “fashion is used as a medium to discuss iconic values in societies as well as lifestyles and Zeitgeist in general and to nourish and inspire each other.” The designers’ collaboration has the same objective and the young designers have exchanged ideas about their cultural backgrounds and detected differences and similarities used in the creative process. As a result, the Abaya, the traditional Arabian garment, was revised in different styles ranging from ‘rocker’, ’20’s’ to ‘ethno’. Other pieces of the collection presented at the fashion show include a coat that combines a varsity jacket and an Abaya as well as an A-line leather dress partly inspired by the theme of ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’.
“Dubai-Berlin Fashion Fusion” to tackle fashion, creativity and young culture in the two cities
As the fashion industry is still very new in Dubai, it is important for local designers to find out how their colleagues in other countries work and present themselves. In this regard, Khulood Thani, founder of the fashion label “Bint Thani”, stated that the exchange programme has been a great learning and very stimulating experience for the Dubai based designers, who are paving the way for shaping the local fashion industry. The designers from Berlin also declared to have profited from the “very inspiring and interesting collaboration, highlighting not only the convergence of two entirely different fashion styles but also the diverse approaches to work on designs,” according to Sophie Boehmert. The fashion show showcasing the “Dubai-Berlin Fashion Fusion” is expected to represent a prime example of bridging the gap between Arabic and Western styles and make the East meet the West.
The fashion show is open for the public and registrations can be done online under [email protected] until 21st January 2012.
“Dubai-Berlin Fashion Fusion” to tackle fashion, creativity and young culture in the two cities
About the Goethe-Institut
The Goethe-Institut is the cultural organisation of the Federal Republic of Germany with a global reach, working to promote both German language and culture. With a network of 149 institutes and ten liaison offices in 92 countries around the world and 13 institutes in Germany, the Goethe-Institut promotes knowledge of the German language abroad and fosters international cultural cooperation. Through the provision of information on Germany’s cultural, social and political life, the Goethe-Institut conveys a comprehensive picture of Germany. In line with that, the Goethe-Institut Gulf Region offers German language teaching in Abu Dhabi, Dubai as well as Al-Ain and organises cultural events in the Gulf Region.
For further information about the Goethe-Institut Gulf Region: http://www.goethe.de/ins/ae/abu/enindex.htm?wt_sc=abudhabi
