Designer Thobes?

 Above: Television Producer  Tariq Edrees sporting Toby

I love it when designers take a traditional garment and make it glamorous. One brand, Toby, has done just that with its own unique take on the traditional men's garment of the Arab Gulf countries. For many men in the gulf countries, the thobe signifies a tie to their past that they are adamant about keeping. Many men take pride in wearing the traditional garment but for today's fashion conscious Arab youth, a little more sophistication and glamor is needed for them to sport the thobe proudly.

 As the brainchild of Saudi Arabian designer Hatem Al Akeel, Toby prides itself on producing thobes that merge the traditional with contemporary fashion elements. Toby creates pieces that are palatable to both Eastern and Western tastes and provides an opportunity for Arab youth in the gulf countries to express their individuality while holding on to their sartorial legacy. I want to buy a thobe now!

The designer:
Toby:

Diana Haddad: Ya 3aibo

I LOVE Diana Haddad's playfulness in this video! And I love that she does a full range of music, from khaleeji to dabke. Love her!
She's definitely one of the classier Arab female singers.

Can't Take it With You: Photographs of Muslims In America

Take a journey with photographer Omar Mullick as he reveals his seven years of documenting Muslims in America at Gallery FCB. Mullick's work entitled "Can't Take It With You: Photographs of Muslims in America 2002-2009" is a culmination of the many road trips he took throughout America to document the lives of Muslims. The exhibit shows a cross-section of America that is rarely uncovered. From Sufi gatherings to veiled music producers, Mullick "unveils" the Islam that is not shown in today's post-9/11 news, where war and extremism are always attached to Muslims. The exhibit opens with a reception on October 8th at 6pm, and ends on November 5th. Come out and support Omar Mullick's work! I will be there tomorrow!
Gallery FCB is located at 16 W. 23rd St.

The First New York Kurdish Film Festival: Cinema Across Borders

Save the date! The first ever Kurdish film festival in the U.S. will take place this October 21-25, 2009. The festival will showcase films and documentaries from the Kurdish Middle East as well as the Kurdish diaspora. This five day event will feature ten short films, a documentary, and eight feature films. It will also include discussions and a filmmaker's panel with respected Kurdish filmmakers from the Middle East and abroad. Through this festival, hopefully a better understanding of an often marginalized culture can be reached. It is time the Kurds had a voice!

All screenings will either take place at the NYU Cantor Film Center or the NYU Hagop Kevorkian Center. Visit the Arteeast website for more details and showtimes.

A Sliver of Social Change in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Saudi's first mixed sex university where women are free to dress as they please, and where they are able to drive? This seems like a definite step in the right direction for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Maybe it will be the precursor to a shift in the Saudi society's view of women and foreigners?

Saudi's deeply conservative society is looking to modernize, and I think King Abdullah's idea of a university being where change happens is a grand one because it is the young of today who initiate social change in society. King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) will be one of the most modern in the world, boasting the world's fastest supercomputer, state of the art technology, and most importantly for Saudi Arabia, an environment that fosters equal opportunity for both males and females. We can only hope that more institutions like this one are set up in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

A classroom at KAUST

The KAUST campus

And if the following video serves to show how gender and interracial relations are treated in this university, I am bubbling with happiness.

Joan Fàbregas Collection

I was really pleased with Joan Fàbregas's collection at Barcelona's 080. Fàbregas stuck with basic black and white but played with a myriad of styles and silhouettes in his collection. It did not bore me for a second. There were a lot of sheer numbers in there that would be able to work in the Spring as well as probably the Fall and Winter. The designer moves on a range from simple to drastically detailed, but he maintains stability throughout the collection and the pieces mesh well together. My favorite is definitely the black overall-like piece in the picture above. 

Photos via: Homo-neurotic

Givenchy Spring/Summer 2010

The background music! Enough said.

Momo for Y-3 Limited Edition Sneakers

I basically died over these kicks when I first saw them. They are a product of a collaboration between Momo the graffiti artist whose graffiti can be found all over Manhattan, and Y-3. The result is a heavily graffiti influenced hi-top that blows my mind with the use of geometry and color. The sneakers are limited edition and there will be 350 pairs selling for $380 each.

Iran Inside Out

Today is the last day to catch the Iran Inside Out exhibit at the Chelsea Art Museum. I will be there as an added incentive. :)

Here is a description from the Chelsea Art Museum site:

The groundbreaking exhibition features 35 artists living and working in Iran alongside 21 others living in the Diaspora. The result is a multifarious portrait of 56 contemporary Iranian artists challenging the conventional perceptions of Iran and Iranian art. 

 

In Iran Inside Out, 210 works comprising painting, sculpture, photography, video and installation come together, in a rare moment which allows visitors an intimate look into the people, both inside and outside a country that is more complex than images of veiled women, worn out calligraphy and what a handful of other emblematic images would suggest.

 

Curated by Sam Bardaouil and Till Fellrath, Iran Inside Out is an examination of the means through which a young generation of artists is reconciling the daily implications of cultural and geographical distances with the search for individual artistic expression. The exhibition offers an unexpected insight into the artistic energy of a culture that is constantly evolving as Iranians living both in and out of the country, come of age living and working in contentious societies.  While half of these artists such as Vahid Sharifian, Barbad Golshiri, Farideh Lashai andJinoos Taghizadeh reside in Iran, the other half including artists such as Shirin Neshat, Shahram Entekhabi, Mitra Tabrizian and Shoja Azari has been interspersed in the Diaspora. 

 

Iran Inside Out explores the process of deconstruction and reinvention of both, self and art that has resulted from this cultural schism, often swinging between openness and dialogue, or seclusion and separatism. Ironically, contrary to one’s expectations, the artists living abroad often draw more on their cultural heritage, while those on the inside focus more on issues of everyday life without much regard to what ‘the outside’ views as specifically Iranian references. Yet, within these disparities, one element stands strong: the recurrent references, sometimes ambiguous, at times emotional, often nostalgic and on occasion satirical and even tragic to Iran the country, Iran the past, the Iran which has been lost and that which could be found.

Moscow Stylin'

via Face Hunter... I haven't seen a lot of street style photos from Moscow but if they're looking as cool as this guy, I love it already! I love pairing a jacket with shorts for a not so conventional look. And oh boy is that jacket amazing or what? And those shoes! I must get a pair like that. He is simply the epitome of calm, cool, and collected.

Nom de Guerre Fall/Winter 2009 Lookbook

Nom De Guerre released a lookbook recently for their Fall/Winter 2009 campaign. The beautifully photographed pictures come complete with commentary to set the mood for the collection which seemingly gives off a stylish Russian guerrilla army vibe, accented by fur leg warmers, bullet rounds, and the traditional Russian ushanka (fur hat). This campaign features photographer Erik Swain and a diverse group of models including Tal Lee, Ali Mehrabian, Terry Murphy, Christopher Purpura, Jamil Ramirez, Egil Rostad, Michael Russo, and Michael John Whitaker. Those fur leg warmers NEED to be mine!

Enjoy:

The Look: Bow Tie Mania

This fall, jump on the bandwagon and invest in a bow tie or two (0r 10). This cousin to the tie has seen a major comeback as more men and even women are starting to realize how sartorially pleasing they look. They are classy and can easily dress up a casual outfit for a night on the town or a day in the office. There are so many different varieties and patterns that you can never get bored with them and they certainly bring an old-world charm that is refreshing in todays uber-modern fashion world. Here are some suggestions to jump start your bow tie quest:

Yuzhny Bow Tie- Tone-on-tone silk jacquard paisley in a gorgeous shade of burgundy.

Terra Encantada Bow Tie- Purple, light blue, and tan swirling on deep green cotton.

British Rep Strip Bow Tie- Woven silk masterpieces that are ideally suited for striped tie connoisseurs who will settle for nothing less than the best.

Oliver Bow Tie- Light gold, brass, ivory, and bittersweet red circles scattered on navy silk saglia.

Blenheim Bow Tie- Named after Sir Winston Churchill's brithplace and inspired by his navy favorite, on silk twill.

All featured bow ties and descriptions can be found on Beau Ties Ltd.

Raf Simons redefines the Dr. Martens shoe for Fall 2009

Dr. Martens has smartened up it's look by collaborating with Raf Simons to create some oh so amazing shoes. The shoes still have the classic Dr. Martens shape but now come in copper, gold, and silver metallic colors. I must admit that I am usually not a fan of Dr. Martens but this collection of shoes definitely has me eating my words. You can get these shoes at Oki-ni.