Tashkeel Unveils Tanween Collection 2025: A Fusion of Heritage and Innovation

Tanween Collection 2025 marks a milestone in the UAE’s design landscape. Unveiled by Tashkeel at Downtown Design in Dubai, a remarkable showcase of creativity, sustainability, and cultural memory emerging from the UAE’s most promising design talent.

The collection featured nine designers from the Tashkeel Tanween Design Programme 2025, each of whom has spent the past 11 months immersed in research, experimentation, and collaboration with engineers and scientists to create functional objects that push the boundaries of material innovation while remaining deeply rooted in Emirati heritage.

Displayed alongside are portraits of the designers and their works, capturing the creativity and craftsmanship that define the Tanween Collection 2025:

Hessa Alghandi

Sarah Al Dulaimi

Nasser Al Ghawi

The pieces on display tell stories as diverse as the materials they employ. Emirati designer Hessa Alghandi transforms discarded palm wood into sculptural pendant lighting that bridges tradition and contemporary elegance, while Iraqi-British artist Sarah Al Dulaimi reimagines the abaya in Oculus, a layered chiffon wall light that transforms textile waste into luminous art. Poet-designer Nasser Al Ghawi celebrates the symbolism of the palm tree with the Al-Nawa Collection 2025, a chandelier and feature table crafted from thousands of date stones and eco-resin.

Alefiyah Ustad and Reem Shawkat

Tasneem Al Nabhani

Furniture designs reinterpret time-honored craftsmanship: the sand-based coffee table Loodo by Alefiyah Ustad and Reem Shawkat of Clock & Cloud evokes the majlis, and Tasneem Al Nabhani’s Bayn wa Bayn console uses palm-frond desert board to mirror the shifting landscapes of the Gulf. Jasim Alnaqbi’s jewellery cabinet Haila transforms the Emirati heirloom bangle into a sculptural object of reflection and care, while Amna Al Shamsi and Hannaneh Rafiee’s Al Ghawas seating honors the UAE’s pearl-diving heritage through reclaimed teak, metal, and naturally dyed fabric.

Jasim Alnaqbi

Amna Alshamsi and Hannaneh Rafiee

Beyond its role as a showcase, the Tanween Collection demonstrates Tashkeel’s long-standing commitment to nurturing local talent and advancing a sustainable, culturally resonant design language. Designers will continue to receive support in funding, marketing, and production, enabling them to bring their limited-edition creations to market and establish a foothold in the UAE’s design scene.

As the program opens applications for Tanween 2026, a new cohort of designers, engineers, and architects will embark on a year-long journey of research, collaboration, and material experimentation, culminating in Dubai Design Week 2026. With each edition, Tanween continues to define the UAE’s design narrative one that is modern, innovative, and profoundly connected to its heritage, offering a glimpse into the future of Emirati creativity.