As part of every World Expo, each participating nation is allocated a day to celebrate and showcase their country’s culture and heritage.
This week at Expo Milano 2015 has been dedicated to the United Arab Emirates, the suc-cessor of Expo Milano with Expo 2020 Dubai.
To mark this special occasion, the day has been dedicated to the juxtaposition of the country’s heritage and its modern interpretation, and Katya Kovtunovich, a Dubai-based fashion designer has been invited by Expo 2020 to showcase her work as part of the cele-brations in Milan.
Known to be the first designer to introduce the modern take on the traditional Arabic fa-bric, Katya’s Collection is inspired by the authentic beauty of Sadou, a material widely used in the UAE for upholstery.
Created with the aim to take the Bedouin heritage into the 21st century, Katya comments on her collection,
“I break boundaries of the conventional use of Sadou, re-thinking its traditional role and giving it the central stage and limelight as a fully functional high fashion fabric. I love see-ing new potential in people, places and fabrics.”
“It’s natural for me to see the beauty in the unseen – the Bedouin is juxtaposed with the Aristocratic, the Desert with the City life: rough with refined, heritage with modern. Cul-tures, places and opposite ethnic references are all mixed up creating a new synergy and new reality”.
A unique collection from a Russian-born designer, using traditional Arabic fabric, working in Dubai and creating modern clothes that appeal to women worldwide – is in itself a re-presentation of what Dubai is all about – a global mix of cultures, visions and experiences that connects minds and creates a future.
