As I make my way through the busy streets of Ashrafieh, it might be due to my biased perception but my eyes are drawn to Maktabis everywhere. And all of them in the carpet business.…
A sophisticated mix of the best of the industrial and the artisanal, Santoni’s hand-finished shoes strike a stylish revolt against mass produced uniformity. As I clatter along the pebble beach at Portonovo, I notice a…
The hotels Jean-Michel Gathy designs for the likes of Aman, One&Only and Cheval Blanc are off the decadence Richter scale. It’s therefore about time we meet the man who pioneered the private plunge pool, ‘naughty…
Born in Dakar and raised in Kuwait City, Fatima Al Qadiri is a genre-mixing phenomenon in the world of electronica. The New York-based visual artist and composer’s works pivot around the politicised axes of gender,…
Born in Beirut but based in Paris and as passionate about graphic design as he is about furniture or lighting, Charles Kalpakian’s designs sit at the junction of several different overlapping worlds. A quote from…
Practicing interior design and architecture out of the same office, professions as separate as they are entwined, Dada & Associates and TheOtherDada operate in a way that is interdependent but independent. As family businesses go,…
The Caracalla Dance Theatre is the leader of its kind in the Middle East. Established over 45 years ago by Abdel-Halim Caracalla, it is now run by his children Ivan and Alissar who maintain its…
Faced with mass production, a rapidly changing automobile industry and the development of new materials like nylon and plastic, the venerable luxury trunk and bag maker, Moynat closed its doors in 1976. What it didn’t…
At first sight, you’ll never guess that Marianne Hoayek is the right hand of one of the world’s strongest and most respected central bank governors. Ignore those good looks and youthful exuberance because underneath lies…
With high collars, plunging backless dresses, tailored cropped tops and smart tuxedo jackets, Karoline Lang’s designs are refreshingly un-Middle Eastern, and even her branding doesn’t give the game away. She does in fact hail from…