The rise of new designers in the Middle East and Africa: making traditional fashion go global

Vogue Fashion Dubai Experience opened in one of the world’s largest malls on Thursday, showcasing designs by a range of emerging talents from Africa to ultra-conservative Saudi Arabia.

Models wearing modern and edgy skirts, jackets, and dresses by eight international designers paraded on the catwalk in the Dubai mall, as shoppers watched.

“My line has two sides: feminine that goes to edgy and boyish,” said Saudi designer Reem al-Kanhal, who in 2009 launched her own ready-to-wear clothing and accessories label recognisable by its unusual cuts.

“I always challenge myself in doing something we don’t always see… simple, but taken sometimes from our own tradition in the Arab world,” she told AFP before the show.

Kanhal herself was dressed in what looked like the traditional black abaya usually worn by women in the Gulf region, but with a funky design as well as several necklaces and rings.

However, unlike most designers in the Gulf, Kanhal designs Western-style clothing and has refused to limit her creativity to the abaya.

Original article by Lynne al-Nahhas

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The rise of new designers in the Middle East and Africa: making traditional fashion go global