Mohammadreza Ghodousi
Mohammadreza Ghodousi is one of the founders of Iranian architecture practice ZAV Architects, which was established in 2006. The practice is pushing for the notion of ‘form follows public interest’, and is doing its best to implement this approach in all of its urban design and architecture projects. Based in Tehran, ZAV Architects looks at the evolution of the city and the contemporisation of its urban fabric to inform its designs. The firm’s upcoming projects in Tehran includes Charkhooneh, which aims to create public space for collective work and social interaction, focusing on the young generation active in entrepreneurship and the start-up scene. Another upcoming project is the design of the public spaces surrounding the Museum of the Iran-Iraq War in the Abbas Abad hills of Tehran. The practice is also working in the northern part of the country, redesigning a farm for community activities and contemporary agri-production, with a view to creating agritourism.
Mona El Mousfy
Mona El-Mousfy is an architect and the founder of SpaceContinuum, a research-based architecture practice in Sharjah that explores the relationships between space, shared social practices and socio-cultural conditions. El-Mousfy is the Advisor to the Sharjah Architecture Triennial and played a key role in founding the initiative in 2017. She is also the Architecture Consultant for the Sharjah Art Foundation, where she has worked on several projects including successive editions of the Sharjah Biennial since 2005. El-Mousfy is currently engaged in various adaptive reuse projects and has led the design for the SAF Art Spaces in Al Mureijah, which was shortlisted for the 2019 Agha Khan Award for Architecture, and the Rain Room in Sharjah. Her most recent adaptive reuse project is the Flying Saucer, 2020, where she has restored the original mid-‘70s character of the building while introducing a new outdoor public space and a lower-level community space around a sunken courtyard.
Nada Debs
Nada Debs is a Lebanese designer living and working in Beirut whose work ranges from product and furniture design to craft, art, fashion and interiors. What ties her work together is her ability to distil culture and craftsmanship to create pieces of emotional resonance. Fascinated by the role of the human hand to tell stories and evoke a sense of belonging, she describes craft as a feeling that goes beyond geography, language and culture, regularly utilising craft traditions and techniques found across the Middle East in her work, presenting them in a contemporary language that often interacts with other global influences. She is currently working on the renovation of the Arab League Hall in Cairo, as well as designing a collection of prayer rugs called Transcendence, her latest collaboration with the Fatma Bint Mohamed Bin Zayed Initiative (FMBI), with whom she had previously created the You and I rug collection in collaboration with female carpet weavers in Kabul.
Noura Al-Sayeh
Noura Al Sayeh is an architect and curator currently working at the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities (BACA) as Head of Architectural Affairs, where she is responsible for overseeing the planning and implementation of cultural institutions and museums, as well as the creation of an active agenda of exhibitions and academic exchange initiatives. Since 2015, she has been directing the ‘Pearling, Testimony of an Island Economy’ UNESCO World Heritage project, which was awarded the Aga Khan Award for Architecture for the 2019 cycle and is part of the Muharraq Revitalisation Project. She is currently co-curating and designing Bahrain’s participation at the Venice Biennale alongside Ghassan Chemali. She is the deputy general commissioner for Density Weaves Opportunities, Bahrain’s Pavilion at the Expo Dubai 2020, and continues to work on the ongoing Pearling Path project.
Nuhayr Zein
Nominated by Pallavi Dean – Roar
Nuhayr Zein is a young UAE-grown Egyptian architect and researcher whose work spans different disciplines including architecture, product design and material research. She finds inspiration in the surrounding natural context, which is reflected in her work at a material, spatial and formal scale to create culturally relevant and environmentally responsible design and material solutions. In a resource-constrained world and with the aim of creating a symbiosis between nature and design, Zein focuses on expanding the range of sustainable materials in the design industry. Her recent material innovation, a plant-based leather alternative to animal and synthetic leathers, was selected to be exhibited both during Dubai Design Week and Venice Design Week. She is currently further developing this material with scientists, in collaboration with Tashkeel. Her latest furniture collection is also currently represented by a number of galleries, including Galerie Philia.
Omar Abdelghafour
Omar Abdelghafour founded L.S. Design (Light Space Design), a multidisciplinary design and architecture practice, in 2004 and has since brought his minimalist approach to design to the Middle East, creating projects that are pared back in their approach yet richly textured in their attention to materiality, spatial design and user experience. Spanning private and commercial architecture and interiors, Abdelghafour has also worked on urban planning projects, product design, furniture, lighting and transport design, displaying his multi-faceted approach to design. Abdelghafour has high regard for craftsmanship and refined aesthetics and is a firm believer that design should be passionate, dynamic and contextually relevant for the region in which it is being delivered. L.S. Design is currently working on private residences in Dubai and penthouses in both Dubai and London, as well as hotel in Bali, with future projects including a resort in Oman.
Omar Nakkash
Dubai-based designer Omar Nakkash founded NAKKASH Design Studio in 2015, creating a multidisciplinary design and architecture practice that focuses on the human element of every project. Running one of the most promising, young practices in Dubai, Nakkash works across residential and commercial interiors, while the design studio also offers graphic design and product design services as well as the curation of furniture collections. Nakkash’s projects showcase a detail-oriented eye and appreciation for materiality and unexpected design solutions. He is currently working on two residential projects in Dubai and office projects for international holding companies, as well as F&B projects.
Paul Bishop
UK-born Paul Bishop has worked in the Middle East for over 20 years, with an array of award-winning F&B and hospitality projects under his belt – such as Massimo Bottura’s restaurant, Torno Subito, in the W Dubai – the Palm hotel. Bishop Design by Paul Bishop, which was founded in 2004 in Dubai, is now an international, multi-award-winning design house with over 90 regional and global awards from projects rolled out across the globe. Bishop has recently completed two F&B venues in Zaha Hadid’s ME Dubai hotel and is currently working on the SLS Hotel & Residences as well as a hotel in Morocco, F&B projects in Saudi Arabia and projects in the Bahamas.
Rabah Saeid
Dubai-based, Sudanese designer Rabah Saeid began her career in interior design in the US, later moving to the Gulf region where she began working on commercial, retail and hospitality projects. Saeid’s string of projects spans Houston, Aspen, Marrakech, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. She founded her interior architecture studio, Styled Habitat, in 2016 with a simple maxim: ‘Great design is a luxury for all.’ The studio employs a blend of contemporary, custom and vintage pieces from a variety of periods, creating a layered feel that is rich in texture and influence yet functional and elegantly effortless, helping to foster a lifestyle that is narrative-driven and personal. Saeid also works on enriching the design community through initiatives, as well as championing education and training for young professionals and mentorship to young entrepreneurs. Saeid is currently working on the Jotun HQ and regional office in Dubai, as well as high-end residential projects for private clients, a flagship and corporate office for a telecommunication company in Africa and a number of wellness projects.
Rabih Geha
Lebanese-Croatian architect Rabih Geha launched his eponymous multi-disciplinary firm Rabih Geha Architects (RG/A) in 2006, representing a generation of young architects in Lebanon that are paving the way for a new approach within the country’s urban landscape and design sphere. Geha has designed Beirut’s popular fitness spaces, nightlife venues and luxury residences, as well as other commercial and retail interiors, with clients including the likes of Aïshti, Addmind Group, A&S Chronora Rolex, Four Seasons Hotel, Images d’Orient, Uberhaus, Patchi and U Energy Health Club. He has since expanded his practice into Nigeria and Saudi Arabia and is currently working on renovating and restoring a traditional Lebanese house in Beirut, F&B projects in Saudi and popular nightclub B 018’s Dubai location, as well as realising projects in Qatar and the US.
