There’s no shortage of talent here in the Middle East and brands are increasingly looking at collaborations in the market as a result. Case in point: luxury Italian eyewear brand Glassing has tapped young Emirati creative Fatma Al Mulla to design a range of sunglasses cases exclusively for the Middle East.
Speaking to Buro 24/7 Middle East about the collaboration, Steffano Ottone and Alessandro Forte said, “We were looking for a local UAE designer in order to better connect with Emirati people and clients. People love our brand and we are grateful for it, therefore we wanted to give something back as an appreciation of the culture. We thought Fatma would be a perfect match.”
We caught up with Fatma to talk about the design process and what each of her creations represent…
How did the collaboration with Glassing come about?
It honestly came by surprise. They knew about me and I knew about them through passing by their space. I was very happy to see an email from them regarding a collaboration. They were very easygoing when it came to the design aesthetics and they were just amazing to work with.
How much creative control did you have with the designs? Where did you draw your inspiration from?
I had complete creative control, they wanted something that reflected my style of illustrations, something that was recognisable as my own. As usual I drew my inspiration from within my own surroundings and culture.
What do each of the designs represent?
My designs reflect the culture we live in, but in a modern sense. People living in the modern world, where social media has taken over, but they are still deeply rooted in culture and tradition. My art has always been open for discussion, it is a conversation piece.
See Fatma’s designs below…
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The Glassing x FMM collaboration will be available with purchases made in store from June.
Until then, see Raf Simons’ first full eyewear collection for Calvin Klein.
