The Saudi 100 Brands exhibition opened its doors yesterday in New York. It displays the works of 100 Saudi designers that reflect the culture and heritage of the Kingdom through demi-couture, bridal wear, bags, jewellery and much more.
Princess Reema bint Bandar Al-Saud, the Saudi ambassador to the US, inaugurated the opening ceremony of the exhibition with a speech.
“I will tell you that the collections that you see here are inspired by Arabia. But they are made for the world. That is the magic that the Saudi Fashion Commission has brought by bringing the collections to New York, the heart of the fashion world,” she said.
“Creativity is not born in one country. Culture doesn’t have a specific place where it ends or begins.
And what you’re going to witness is a symbol that has nothing to do with politics or governments. But it has everything to do with the human spirit.”
The Saudi Fashion Commission, under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, hosted the exhibition and chose the designers based on the uniqueness and cultural relevance of their pieces. The fashion exhibition will take place from July 26 to Aug. 7, 2022, at the Iron23 venue in New York.
Among the attendees at the opening ceremony were Venezuelan-American fashion designer Carolina Herrera and Lebanese fashion designer Reem Acra.
Exhibition Features
The Saudi 100 brand is a global travelling exhibition. It features a curated selection of clothing and accessories from 100 Saudi designers.
The designers picked from a pool of 1,500 and finalized into the top 100 based on their pieces.
The exhibition breaks down into eight categories: ready-to-wear, modest, concept, premiere, demi-couture, bridal, bags, and jewellery.
Loodyana is among the 100 Saudi brands of choice. It started out in Jeddah in 2001 and has been producing items for the past 21 years.
The brand is famous for its luxurious kaftans and ready-to-wear evening dresses. The designers behind the brand are the Al-Haqbani sisters, born and raised in the Kingdom.
The designers shared that their brand values and design inspirations come from their love of family and the balance women bring to life.
The brand uses intricate embroidery and modern silhouettes to combine traditional and contemporary features in distinct pieces that reflect the culture of the Kingdom.
“We were so excited to go through a new experience,” Abeer Al-Haqbani, cofounder of Loodyana, told Arab News.
The designer expressed her gratitude for choosing her as one of the Saudi fashion designers to showcase their work in New York. “We are making history today,” she said.
The Loodyana design highlighted at the exhibition is a black off-the-shoulder dress with a set of embroidered gloves.
“Women are the backbone of the family. Our gown design is the beautiful armour that protects the delicate spirit of the woman inside the dress,” Al-Haqbani said.
Inspiration Recollections
The design team shared that they drew inspiration from memories of the family gatherings they had growing up in the Saudi mountains.
The hard outline of the distant mountains is the inspiration behind the A-line shape of the gown design. The beaded hand embroidery on the cloth reflects the mystery generated by the heavy fog engulfing the mountains.” Al-Haqbani explained.
The cofounder highlighted that the intricate design took over four months to create.
“Just as there is a fragile and delicate allure hidden in the rough-edged mountains and rocky landscape, there is exquisite femininity hidden in the strong silhouette of our dress,” she said.
The designers initially discovered that their brand had been selected for the exhibition when they received an email from Princess Reema and Manuel Arnaut, the editor-in-chief of Vogue Arabia.
The exhibition will continue throughout the upcoming week and is open to the public. Admission is free, but attendees must request a ticket through the link
https://www.saudi100brands.nyc/
