Her Highness Sheikha Latifa Bint Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Chairperson of Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture

(MENAFN- MENAFNEditorial) 20 Names to Watch at Dubai Design Week






Behind some of this year’s most compelling projects at Dubai Design Week are designers and studios shaping the region’s creative landscape. We spotlight 20 regional creatives to know, including emerging talents, established practitioners and studios pushing their practices in new directions.

Get to know the people behind the projects, explore their latest work and find out where to see them at Dubai Design Week.








Reem Nassour

Lebanese-Emirati architect Reem Nassour, founder of NAO Architects, presents Three Gardens and a Room, this year’s winning Urban Commissions proposal, exploring how light, temperature and materials influence our experience.





AlZaina Lootah

Emirati architect and designer AlZaina Lootah joins the UAE Designer Exhibition at Downtown Design as Design Collaborator, working with 30 UAE-based designers to present works responding to this year’s theme, Inherited Futures.








VARUSSI

Dubai-based practice VARUSSI presents an installation at Abwab, drawing on Taleem, a Kashmiri system of coded weaving instructions, to explore how patterns and craft knowledge are passed through generations.





Abrar Zenkawi

Kuwaiti-Hungarian artist Abrar Zenkawi will collaborate with OUCHHH Collective for an interactive experience by IQOS, transforming centuries-old Arabesque patterns into digital artwork that visitors can shape and make their own.








BONE studio

Dubai-based architecture and interior design studio BONE will design this year’s Forum at Downtown Design, while its founders, Achraf Mzily and Natalie Mahakian, will also debut Biscuit, their architectural materials consultancy and supply house.





Khaled Hassaan

Egyptian designer Khaled Hassaan will present VOID SHELF at the UAE Designer Exhibition at Downtown Design, a modular shelving system combining perforated pine and stainless steel, contrasting the warmth of natural wood with industrial metal.








Chafic Mekawi

Canadian-Lebanese designer and UAE Designer Exhibition alumnus Chafic Mekawi presents The Charms at Studio Obliq, Downtown Design, a collection of sculptural brass furniture details inspired by the UAE’s heritage and everyday life.





DUETTE

Founded by Fuad and Raha, Duette Studio presents THE PARK, commissioned by Meraas, alongside Duette+, its cultural platform hosting talks, workshops and creative exchange throughout Dubai Design Week.








Dalia Rafeh

Abwab winner Dalia Rafeh’s Shhhhhhhh takes the Arabic letter ش and its call for quiet, transforming it into a line of red light. Drawing on public signage, the work explores silence as a moment of pause, reflection and listening.





Contemporary Spaces

Alya, Maitha and Obaid Al Suwaidi, founders of Emirati furniture studio Contemporary Spaces, will unveil Saelora, a new collection inspired by the warmth and changing light of the golden hour.








Noora Jabir and Moufida Mohideen

Winners of the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Award 2026, Noora Jabir and Moufida Mohideen present Everyday Artifacts, a partially buried fishing hook inspired by archaeological discoveries at Tell Abraq.





Abdelrahman AlAgha

Palestinian architect Abdelrahman AlAgha, co-founder of aestudio, will present InBetween What Was and What Will Be, an installation using fragmented forms to explore destruction, reconstruction and new beginnings.








Kinda Ghannoum

Syrian-Polish designer Kinda Ghannoum makes her debut at the UAE Designer Exhibition, with woven carpets that reinterpret traditional Arabic calligraphy and motifs through pixelated patterns inspired by digital screens and contemporary visual culture.





Mustard & Linen

Founders of Abu Dhabi-based design studio Mustard & Linen, Rim Guirari and Thomas Castagnet are behind this year's creative concept of TOTO's showcase at Downtown Design, drawing inspiration from Japanese architecture and hospitality.








Rami Al Ali

Syrian fashion designer Rami Al Ali collaborates with BMW Middle East on an installation inspired by the BMW 7 Series, exploring dedication through innovation, craftsmanship and attention to detail.





Kanaka Raghavan

Dubai-based designer Kanaka Raghavan reimagines Devanagari typography through block printing, using translucent textile layers that separate and recompose as visitors move around.








Rasha Saffarini

Dubai-based architect and designer Rasha Saffarini will present Taqleem, a structure made from discarded palm fronds that draws on the UAE’s cultural heritage, transforming natural waste into a space for prayer, gathering and rest.





Grace Shieh

Grace Shieh will present A Library of Paper Memories at Abwab, combining handmade paper, poetry and experimental writing to explore how texture, form and material can carry memories and meaning beyond words.








Sumaya Dabbagh

Saudi-based designer Sumaya Dabbagh presents an immersive installation for Jazeera Paints, exploring how colour and materiality shape our experience of architecture, interiors and everyday spaces.





Dr. Basem Eid Mohamed

Designer and researcher Dr. Basem Eid Mohamed presents ShadeForm, featuring 3D-printed scale models exploring AI, computational design and environmental performance in contemporary architecture.






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