Despite Conflict, Middle East Design Weeks Reveal Dates as Momentum Remains Strong
MILAN— Conflict and the threat of wider war are not stopping the Middle East’sdesignindustry. Organizers across key regional design hubs — Beirut, Dubai, Doha and Riyadh — told WWD this week that major design. . .
MILAN— Conflict and the threat of wider war are not stopping the Middle East’sdesignindustry. Organizers across key regional design hubs — Beirut, Dubai, Doha and Riyadh — told WWD this week that major design events are still moving forward, even as the U. S. andIranconflict impacts travel and security across the Gulf. Here, a look at what the organizers continue to plan. BeirutWe Design Beirutwill return for its third edition from May 26 to 30, 2027, organizers told WWD Thursday. Founded in 2024, the event has risen as a platform for designers, artisans, architects and students across productdesign, interiors, architecture and craft — and a vehicle for positioning Beirut within the global design conversation. “This will happen no matter what. If we ever have to postpone because of circumstances, we postpone but we don’t stop,” founder Mariana Wehbe told WWD. Wehbe said attendance doubled between the 2024 and 2025 editions, driven in part by international visitors, with growth reflected in flight bookings and hotel occupancy. The event has featured established Lebanese designers such as Nada Debs alongside international names like Italian glass artist Christian Pellizzari. A major draw for the international design curious has been the abundance of exhibitions in rarely accessible sites including Burj El Murr, the interior design building by Lebanese design pillar Khalil Khouri, and Villa Audi, the mosaic museum housed in a 1910 residence that later served as Bank Audi’s headquarters. Sponsorship has also grown, with partners including Arab Bank Switzerland, while The Architectural Association School of Architecture in London and the University of Miami are expected to contribute to the 2027 student exhibition. “We Design Beirut is what brought me back [to Lebanon] after 15 years to Beirut,” said Rani Jabban, deputy chief executive officer of Arab Bank Switzerland. “Supporting projects like this means supporting Lebanon’s creative community, its talent and its future” he told WWD in an emailed statement. Maison Tabet, Beirut, Lebanon. DIA MRAD“We Design Beirut has become so much bigger than an event. It’s become a platform, a community and now it carries real responsibility,” Wehbe added. The 2027 edition will unfold across a new lineup of heritage and private sites under the theme “Love on the Mediterranean. ” Once again, rarely seen sites will open their doors, among them Maison Tabet, a private villa, will host design showcase “The Shape of Wonder” curated by Nathalie Khoury, in addition to a photography exhibition by Johanne Issa. At the industrial space PSLab, “What Remains of Summer” curated by Petra Abou Sleiman and “The Harvest” curated by Claudia Skaff, Galal Mahmoud and Karim Chaya will explore Lebanon’s mouneh food-preservation traditions through immersive chef-and-artisan installations. Maison Rose is opening publicly for the first time for “Licensed to Forget,” a student show bringing together participants from 10 universities. DIA MRADOther venues include Maison Rose, opening publicly for the first time for “Licensed to Forget,” a student show curated by Teymour Khoury, Yasmina Mahmoud and Karl Abi Karam that will bring together participants from 10 universities in Lebanon and abroad to examine Beirut’s endangered architectural legacy. The program also includes a UNESCO-supported student exhibition at photographer Alaa Tanir’s seafront residence in Manara. DubaiNatasha CarellaCourtesy of Dubai Design WeekElsewhere in the region, the next edition of Dubai Design Week is scheduled for Nov. 3 to 8, with its anchor fair Downtown Design running Nov. 5 to 9. The event remains central to the region’s growing design andfurnituresector, which is projected to reach $35 billion by 2031, according to Mordor Intelligence. Since launching in 2015,DubaiDesign Week has grown to more than 1,000 participants from 50 countries and drew 150,000 visitors in 2025. Director Natasha Carella said conversations with international designers, institutions and partners continue with “a degree of pragmatism,” but added that commitment across this year’s program remains strong. Downtown Design director Mette Degn-Christensen said demand for design in the region continues to deepen, with Dubai increasingly at the center of that momentum. She pointed to Art Dubai’s 20th anniversary edition, which drew more than 25,000 visitors in May despite the conflict, with institutions traveling from Seoul, Cape Town and New York. “That’s what forging ahead means to us: not reacting to a single season, but steadily building an industry, with Dubai as its naturalhomein the region,” she said. Dubai Design WeekCourtesy of Dubai Design WeekDohaThe timing of the U. S. andIranconflict droveDesign Doha Biennaleorganizers to postpone from April to Nov. 5. The first event, staged in 2024, was a success, organizers said. The Msheireb Downtown Doha exposition center welcomed 118,000 visitors, including nearly 4,000 international buyers and industry leaders. The event generated an economic impact of $17 million and reached 45. 6 million people across various channels. Currently expected to proceed, the 2026 edition’s highlights will include an exhibition byFromm. Lab, a creative hub linking Qatar’s design scene with Milan, featuring under-35 talent and finalists from its international competition launched during Milan Design Week 2025. Fromm was founded byAlia Rachid, daughter of Mayhoola for Investments chief executive officerRachid Mohamed Rachid. A broad range of showcases will include Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council presenting contemporary craft, as well as showcases like Bricklab, which will explore the material history of the Gulf through Post-Oil and TypeAraby, which will explore Arabic typography. Fahad Al Obaidly, acting director of Design Doha, said that excitement around the event remains strong. Museums, cultural institutions and designers are proposing projects rather than waiting for invitations. “That says a lot about how the Biennial has evolved,” he said, adding that another major international draw is the Design Doha Forum and the new Design Doha Prize, a prestigious biennial award recognizing outstanding design talent from across the MENASA [Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia] region. “The ambition isn’t simply to create a busy cultural calendar; it’s to demonstrate how design can activate an entire neighborhood and leave a lasting legacy after the Biennial closes,” he said. RiyadhInRiyadh, Salone del Mobile. Milanois still expected to stage its first event in the Saudi capital from Nov. 26 to 28, at King Abdullah Financial District, though organizers have yet to issue an update on whether or not they will proceed with the November date. The event is expected to feature leading luxury design brands including Molteni&C, Cassina, Porro, Poliform, Minotti, Giorgetti, Visionnaire and Artemide. This event is part of a broader expansion project that aligns with efforts on the part of the Saudi Arabian and Italian governments to boost business in the region. It also aligns with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 plan to diversify the local economy away from oil and beckon international investment. Since the dawn of the strategic initiative the nation has made a significant investment in fashion and design, growing new talent and supporting existing ones. For now, the U. S. State Department lists Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates as Level 3 destinations, advising travelers to reconsider travel, while Lebanon is currently classified as Level 4: Do Not Travel.