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Bahraini fashion designer Hala Kaiksow is creating a collection of garments to highlight the kingdom’s heritage when worn by the people manning the Bahrain Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai.
The self-built Bahrain national pavilion, which will be featured at the Expo from October 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022, bears the slogan ‘Density Weaves Opportunities’ and showcases the features of the island’s natural and urban structural fabric.
The pavilion is an open and slightly submerged exhibition space with an array of columns inspired by the traditional geometric plaster ornamentations of folksy Bahraini architecture.
The columns were also the inspiration behind Hala’s multi-textile line.
“I am using a myriad of different textiles that was customised to compliment the space and the garments,” said the 30-year-old artist and sculptor from Janabiya. “They are constructed of a mix of natural fibres and metals that give the textiles a unique kind of quality.”
Hala, who studied Fine Arts for her Bachelor’s in Boston and had then moved to Paris to study clothing before flying to Florence to get a Master’s in collection design, worked with the Bani Jamra Textile Factory to produce the distinctive contemporary line that also incorporates traditional Bahraini craft techniques.
“For the collection, I was looking at different fibre artists that used metal in their works and I was also researching various cultures that incorporated patched fabrics into their textiles to inspire the ways the metal and natural fibres would intermarry,” she explained.
“My aim is that I hope to inspire a new way to approach garments and the ways by which we create.”
As the pavilion continues as planned, Hala, who has her own practice, is working on a few projects to unveil this summer along with launching a webshop.
She has gained international fame over the years, taking home the 2016 International Fashion Show Designer Award and shortlisted for the 5th Art Jameel Prize exhibited at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Her work has also been exhibited at the Grand Palais as part of a group exhibition in Paris in 2018.
For details, follow @halakaiksow on Instagram.
