The UAE’s most high-profile fashion event is back. Organisers of Fashion Forward (FFWD) have announced Season Four of the twice-yearly showcase featuring some of the top designers in the Middle East, with the addition of a few debutants. The fashion week-styled event will be held from October 4 to 6 at the Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai.
“Season Four is the coming together of our finest designers from across the first three seasons, and we are delighted that so many are returning to showcase their collections this October,” said Bong Guerrero, founder and CEO of Fashion Forward. “The FFWD journey so far has highlighted what incredible talent and creativity we have in this region and you will certainly see the best of this at Season Four.”
A total of 23 designers will present, including established names such as Michael Cinco, Furne One and Emirati designer Zareena Yousuf who will bring their couture collections.
Another Emirati designer, Madiyah Al Sharqi, will return with her ready-to-wear collection. She will be joined by her compatriot Farha Al Shamsi who will make her FFWD debut with her label Ceremony.
“As one of our key industry partners, one of the common goals Fashion Forward and d3 share is to support and showcase pioneering designers emerging from our region, while supporting the potential of the design, luxury and fashion industry,” said Lindsay Miller, managing director, Dubai Design District (d3).
“Our core objective at d3 is to act as a catalyst for the region’s design community, so that the creative talents we have in the region can achieve their aspirations, both business and artistic, while also giving the industry a taste of what Dubai can offer.”
In addition to the catwalk shows, a dedicated retail space for accessory designers called The Garden will also return this season. Guests can browse and purchase accessories and jewellery directly from the 50 participating regional designers. Talks and workshops by renowned names in fashion will also be part of the schedule.
Attendance to the catwalk shows are invite-only, with a few available for registered guests. Details will soon be posted www.fashionforward.ae.
Here is the full list of labels participating at FFWD Season Four:
Amato — The much-loved designer Furne One returns to FFWD for his fourth season. Known for his natural ability to craft extravagant and artistic designs, Dubai-based Furne One has rapidly worked his way up the fashion ladder, and is celebrated both regionally and internationally for his couture creations. www.amatohautecouture.com
Dany Tabet — Lebanese designer Dany Tabet opened the doors to his atelier in 2007. Tabet celebrates the shape and beauty of women by creating one-off, detailed pieces. www.danytabet.com
Jean Louis Sabaji — Lebanese couturier Sabaji first showed at FFWD in Season Three. He returns for Season Four with his conceptual pieces, influenced heavily by the strength and beauty of mother nature. www.jeanlouissabaji.com
Michael Cinco — After wowing in Season One with his couture creations, Cinco returns for Season Four. The Dubai-based designer is best known for his gowns, demonstrating innate creativity and technique, and has amassed an army of international celebrity clientele. www.michaelcinco.com
Zareena — Returning after a hugely successful collection at Season Three, Emirati Zareena Yousuf will once again showcase her pieces this October. Zareena uses fabric combinations and embroidery to complement and enhance a woman’s beauty. www.zareena.com
Asudari Studio — Originally from Saudi Arabia, London-based Lamia Asudari launched her label in 2007 and this season marks her second collection at FFWD. Lamia’s passion lies in her development and execution of intricate and emotionally-driven hand-crafted prints. www.asudari.com
Bashar Assaf — Having showcased at Seasons One and Two under Rabih Kayrouz’s mentorship with The Starch Foundation, last season Bashar Assaf showed a solo collection for Fall ’14. The Lebanese fashion designer returns this season to bring his eponymous label. His signature is the ability to challenge the female body with geometry complimented with sensibility to material and craftsmanship. www.basharassaf.com
Ceremony — Emirati designer Farha Al Shamsi will showcase her label Ceremony which uses eclectic materials to create modern yet traditional ready-to-wear. www.ceremony.ae
Dima Ayad — Having showcased at Seasons One and Two, Dima Ayad returns to the FFWD runways this October. Lebanese designer Ayad launched her brand of eveningwear in 2010 and strives to provide women with ‘fashion that makes you feel good’ — stylish, sophisticated and dresses with a ‘wear-and-go’ philosophy that accentuate and celebrate their bodies, no matter what shape or size. www.dimaayad.com
Endemage — Omani sisters Nadia and Lubna made their FFWD debut in Season Two and return this October with their ultra-feminine dresses and billowy evening gowns with Arabic-infused styles. The sisters draw inspiration from traditional Omani designs and they created Endemage, meaning ‘the merging of two’, in 2010. www.endemage.com
Essa — Essa returns for his fourth consecutive season at Fashion Forward, bringing his collections which weave together the traditional and the modern, using materials and prints that have iconic cuts and are universally flattering, creating colourful and contemporary ready-to-wear pieces, inspired by his Indian origins and Arab sensibilities.
Hasan Hejazi — London-based luxury label Hasan Hejazi specialises in glamourous yet contemporary eveningwear. Known for an ultra-feminine style, Hejazi has also built up an enviable celebrity clientele, having dressed Kylie Minogue, Eva Longoria, Jessie J, Cheryl Cole and Fergie. www.hasanhejazi.com
House of Hashe — Dubai-based Iranian designer Ava Hashemi creates structured, high-end ready-to-wear clothing and accessory lines for women who intend to embrace sophistication and class, whilst staying on trend. www.houseofhashe.com
House of Ronald — Having made his FFWD debut last season, Ronald Abdala returns to showcase at Season Four. Of Lebanese descent, London-born Abdala trained in Los Angeles, Beirut and London before being appointed senior designer for Maison Rabih Kayrouz in 2004. Shortly after this, he launched his own line of womenswear. Abdala’s designs focus closely on the human form, using bold and architectural cuts but delivered with fluidity, making for edgy yet sophisticated pieces. www.houseofronald.com
Madiyah Al Sharqi — Returning for her second season at FFWD, Emirati designer Shaikha Madiyah Al Sharqi offers effortless eveningwear with an updated edge, evolving the traditional vision of elegance. Sharqi is the daughter of the Ruler of Fujairah, His Highness Shaikh Hamad Bin Mohammad Al Sharqi. www.madiyahalsharqi.com
Maral — Iranian designer Maral Yazaloo launched her label MARAL in Paris, before taking it to Rome and is now based in India. Fusionwear characterises her collections as she maintains the balance between modernity and culture. Her collections are a beautiful blend of Middle Eastern aesthetics, Asian tastes and Western flavour. www.maralyazarloo.com
Starch Foundation — Under Rabih Kayrouz’s mentorship, young designers Timi Hayek and Joe Baaklini presented their first FFWD runway collections at Season Three to much acclaim. As they continue their year under the tutelage of Kayrouz, they will show their second collections this October. www.jobaaklini.me, www.timihayek.com
Also showing under the Starch Foundation is Starch alumni and 2014 Woolmark Prize winner for womenswear in the Middle East and India, Rayya Morcos with her label Bird on a Wire. Beirut-based Morcos’ label features ready-to wear and jewellery using unexpected textures inspired by architecture and nature. www.birdonawireonline.com
Tahir Sultan — Season Four will be Sultan’s fourth consecutive FFWD season. The half Kuwaiti, half-Indian designer launched his own label in 2008 and in 2012, he became the first Kuwaiti designer to show at London Fashion Week. Sultan’s pieces pay particular attention to detail, are determinedly glamorous yet conservative, allowing women to feel empowered and sexy without necessarily being too showy and exposing too much. www.tahirsultan.com
Taller Marmo — Showing for their third season at FFWD, Taller Marmo are Dubai-based design duo Riccardo Audisio and Yago Goicoechea. The label merges European elegance with Middle Eastern charm and uses fine Italian tailoring with a minimal approach, fused with Arabic traditions. www.tallermarmo.com
The Emperor 1688 — The Golkar brothers return to FFWD for their fourth season to show their stand-out luxury men and womenswear, following their recent success as menswear winners of the 2014 Woolmark Prize for the Middle East and India. The British-Iranian trio set up the label in 2007 and are based in Dubai. Their collections combine exquisite tailoring, with regal prints and classic cuts made of the finest European fabrics. www.theemperor1688.com
Velsvoir — Launched by brothers Zac, Zubair and Talha Timol in 2012, Velsvoir began by creating bespoke bowties and have since expanded to a range of men’s and women’s accessories and more recently a menswear line. Velsvoir made their FFWD debut at Season Three. The brand focuses on classic tailoring whilst offering quirky and interesting accents to showcase their signature style. www.velsvoir.com
