Meet the new generation of Middle Eastern women shaking up London's cultural agenda

From the designer bringing Turkish style to London, to the artist exhibiting with Ai Weiwei — here are the new ambasadors of style
Jeweller Noor Fares
Carol Sachs
Amy E. Williams2 September 2016

Some 150,000 Londoners hail from the region — yet Middle Eastern women are often stereotyped, from the cliché of the suppressed housewife to the offensive notion that they are flashy and spoilt, wafting around designer stores. In fact, while wealthy Middle Eastern visitors may spend an estimated £1.25bn a year here, some of this city’s most exciting creative talents are of Middle Eastern origin, embracing the capital while drawing on traditions from home to instigate a refreshing international dialogue. So which are the names to know now?

Noor Fares, Jewellery designer, 30

I’m a Londoner above all else,’ says Noor Fares, who first moved to the capital in 2009. ‘But I also feel 100 per cent Lebanese. I grew up speaking the language and learning the history. That is my grounding and it is important for me to relate to my culture and to achieve things as a Middle Eastern woman.’

She’s certainly doing that. With a master’s in jewellery design from Central Saint Martins under her belt, Fares’s eponymous jewellery label, which began ‘just as an interest’ seven years ago, has been a huge hit. Her distinctive geometric necklaces have been worn by the likes of Alicia Vikander and Sienna Miller. All of her collections are, in one way or another, influenced by Middle Eastern culture and many feature the traditional protective eye. ‘It is a constant part of what I do, because jewellery is so intrinsic to our culture. It is always symbolic, always the thing that you give as a gift.’

Zaha Hadid Architecture & Design - In pictures

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The daughter of the former Lebanese deputy prime minister and entrepreneur Issam Fares, and the niece of French designer Sonia Fares, she grew up in Paris and studied art history at Boston’s Tufts University. But, she says: ‘I wanted to make London my base because I knew this was the sort of creative, centre-of-the-world city I wanted to live in.’

Fares, 30, and her husband, artist Alexandre Al Khawam, now live in Belgravia, where she’s part of London’s jet-setting fashion crowd (friends include fellow designers Margherita Missoni, Tatiana Santo Domingo and Mary Katrantzou). But she’s just as comfortable hanging out alone in the Natural History Museum’s Mineral Room — ‘I regularly sit and sketch in London’s museums.’

The late Zaha Hadid was one of her greatest role models. Originally from Iraq, Hadid attended university in Beirut with Fares’s mother, Hala. ‘I see Zaha as a true inspiration to all women. She left us far too soon.’

Leila Maleki, Designer, 31

Dress £1,850, Gucci. Jewellery: Maleki’s own
Carol Sachs

Growing up in Tehran, Iran, Leila Maleki’s idol was her grandfather who had been a high court judge before the revolution in 1979. For a long time, her dream was to emulate him by becoming a lawyer. There was only one problem.

‘It is not so easy to become a practising lawyer as a woman in Iran,’ says the 31-year-old (though women are generally accepted in the workplace, there is no shortage of obstacles — for example, a man can ban his wife from working).

As soon as she was old enough, she came to London to take up a place at Kingston University. After six years of studying — there was also a master’s at King’s College — Leila had a change of heart. ‘Living in London taught me that it was not good enough to have three degrees, you need to have a passion.’ She began helping at her aunt Fariba Farshad’s influential cultural consultancy Candlestar, which produces large events such as Photo London. Attending glamorous parties, she spied a gap in the market. ‘It amazed me that you could buy an incredible dress and find three other people at the same event wearing it,’ she says, ‘and that women were spending £10,000 on these dresses. I wanted to create something just as glamorous for less.’ And so her label Zellei, a collaboration with Turkish designer Zelia Kaçar, which launches this month, was born. Like Fares, she feels her work now creates a link with her Middle Eastern heritage. ‘In Tehran, women love fashion. It is fascinating because they express themselves in hugely creative ways. Even a trip to the grocery shop can become a fashion parade.’

Not that this is the only string to Maleki’s bow. She and her husband, who had their son Dara Alexander last year, hold dinners at their Mayfair townhouse in aid of charities or art projects. ‘Getting stuck into London has been easy. In Tehran, my mother was supportive of my ambitions, but would worry it might be difficult to fulfil them. She’d say: “It’s not because I don’t trust you, I don’t trust society.”’

Anum Bashir, Blogger, 30

Dress, £555, Molly Goddard. Jewellery: Bashir’s own
Carol Sachs

Anum Bashir prides herself on her internationalism. Born and schooled in Qatar, with a degree from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, the 30-year-old splits her time between Doha, where she’s communications officer at creative hub Doha Fire Station, and London, where her style blog Desert Mannequin (above) has won a huge following. What is it about the capital that’s so appealing to globally minded Middle Eastern women like herself?

‘I find it much more manageable than New York, the pace is just right,’ she says. ‘It is way more accessible… The fact that you can sit and drink coffee and meet interesting new people in London, but know that on Friday when you get home you can still go to family prayer — that’s something really special.’

With 34,000 followers on Instagram, she’s keen that her social media influence is about more than just clothes. ‘There are so many pre-conceived notions about Middle Eastern women,’ she says. ‘People sometimes assume that we are only interested in luxury. So if Desert Mannequin can help to change that, that’s great with me.’

Bashir also embraces her Asian roots — her father, an engineer, is Afghan-Indian and her mother, a doctor, is Pakistani. ‘I think if you can be honest about your heritage and make it a point of interest, then that’s kind of wonderful.’

Rasha Kahil, Artist and art director, 36

Top, £530, Maison Rabih Kayrouz; skirt, £600, Christopher Kane
Carol Sachs

Rasha Kahil’s clever, understated photography has been shown internationally including in the UK and Lebanon, from where she originally hails. But she’s also a multi-tasker — having worked for Dazed & Confused and British Vogue, she now happens to be the art director of this magazine.

‘I trained in graphic design but had always done photography, too. I’m very lucky to have a full-time job that I love but I can also manage to work on my photography at the same time.’

Rasha first lived in London as a child when her family relocated during the war in Lebanon, but they returned to Beirut (where her mother now runs a guest house) in 1992 when the political situation calmed down.

Kahil arrived back in London 12 years ago with a plan to stay for six months but fell in love with the city. ‘Now I can’t imagine leaving — London is a hub of creativity and internationalism. It gives you this drive to push your limits, that’s why I came back.’ She enrolled in a master’s at the RCA in communication, art and design, and has lived in east London ever since.

Now 36, her most famous work ‘In Your Home’ is a series of semi-nude self portraits in the homes of friends across the world. The initial solo exhibition in Beirut was well-received. But two years after it closed, her pictures went viral — sparking widespread debate among trolls, conservative critics angered by female nudity, and those who championed the work.

‘In many ways, the art scene there is very liberal,’ says Kahil. ‘Of course, you have to know your audience and exhibit appropriately. My pictures were shown in a gallery and were intended for that context — not for online dissemination. My intentions weren’t to shock but to elicit artistic dialogue and debate.’

The incident inspired Kahil to create an installation work ‘Anatomy of a Scandal’, documenting the extreme reactions online. It was shown earlier this year as a solo exhibition at Fitzrovia’s Art First Gallery.

‘Of course, because I am originally from Lebanon, the work I do can prompt a certain type of response. But I see myself as a global person and I don’t see my Middle Eastern heritage as the main driver for my work. It is just a part of who I am.’

Flavie Audi, Artist, 29

Above: top £580, skirt £2,600, shoes £670, all Céline
Carol Sachs

Flavie Audi was born in Paris to Lebanese parents, but she’s been based in London for over a decade after moving here to study at the Architectural Association, and then at the Royal College of Art. ‘Studying in London seemed very prestigious and there is a freedom here when it comes to architecture — it felt like a place where I could be rebellious with my ideas.’

The 29-year-old Chelsea-based artist has gained critical acclaim for her ingenious glasswork — her Cosmic Clouds collection is the result of oxidising silver with glass to create uneven cloud-like sculptures in brilliant blues — and she thrives on experimentation. In New York, her pieces were exhibited alongside Ai Weiwei, and she is taking an envy-inducing month-long residency at the Six Senses resort in the Maldives, who have commissioned her to recycle the island’s glass as part of an on-going art programme.

Her first solo show will open in November at the Fitzrovia gallery, Tristan Hoare. It will be a special moment: ‘I love London for the mix of tradition and newness. But there is something subtle about London. It is not a city that shows off.’

Later this year, she’ll take part in House of Today, a platform for Lebanese art in Beirut. ‘To be showing there is important to me — glass was first blown in Lebanon in an ancient city called Sidon. My family come from the country where glass was born, and that fact is a constant inspiration to me.’

Though she is a master manipulator of glass, she does not wish to be pigeon-holed. ‘I trained in architecture and craft and I want to always explore different art disciplines,’ she says. ‘What’s great about London is that everything feels like it is an option. There is so much variety in the arts here, and I am constantly coming across new ideas.’

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