lifestyle WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2016 FASHION Arab Fashion Week closes with Warhol-inspired designs rench-Lebanese designer Ingie Chalhoub has closed a busy Arab Fashion Week with a collection inspired by FAmerican pop art icon Andy Warhol. Her models strutted down the catwalk in pleated skirts and blouses and disco-style dresses and jackets, all in a mix of bright red, fuchsia, blue and black. “My design is all about the Parisian chic woman who is travelling all over the world,” Chalhoub told AFP after the show late Monday at a luxurious Dubai hotel. This “woman is very feminine and glamorous,” said the blonde designer, wearing a long black-and-blue skirt with a black top. “This collection was mostly inspired by an exhibi- tion I saw in Paris from Andy Warhol and as I’m very fond of him I wanted to take back his drawings and his paintings and to make out of them some fabrics and some designs,” she said. Chalhoub says she designs the prints she wants on her fabrics “very carefully”. “I play a lot with the fabrics and I play also on the print,” she said, adding that among her favorite combinations is matte crepe with the contrasting brilliance of satin. Palestinian designer Jamal Taslaq’s show preceded the closing act, featur- ing gowns in traditional Palestinian patterns as models walked out to the music of Lebanese composer and oud player Marcel Khalife. Italian designer Giada Curti also presented a colourful Spring-Summer 2017 collection with floral prints and stripes. In its third edition, the fashion week presented more than 20 collections from more than 10 countries. The show shed light on designs by Gulf women, such as Lamya Abedin from the United Arab Emirates, Alanoud Al-Attiya from Qatar who refused to appear on stage or camera, and Jeans Couture by a Saudi mother and daughter duo. It also presented the first ever Emirati model, Rafeea al-Hajsi. French-Lebanese designer Ingie Chalhoub waves at the ‘Very different’ end of her show during the Arab Fashion Week. Organized by the Arab Fashion Council, which represents Designers showcasing their pieces at the Dubai show “know the 22 countries of the Arab League, the week aims to attract their clients very well, the Arab women, so that’s why it’s all... fashion-conscious women from the Gulf, as well as luxury buy- gowns (that are) so bright, shiny, and extravagant but not ers from Russia and China. Alina Cocci, who came from Milan much street fashion.” Asked if she had Arab customers in mind to attend the week, told AFP after Chalhoub’s show that she when designing her collection, Chalhoub insisted that “today found the Arab designers “amazing”. “They’re very particular. there is no such fashion that is only for the Middle East or only They have this oriental touch that we Europeans don’t have, for Paris.” “With the internet... fashion is becoming more and so this is something interesting,” said the Italian, who works in more global.” — AFP the fashion industry. She did however criticize the “organization” of the event, with shows being delayed for at least an hour-and-a-half every day, adding that unlike in Paris and Milan, Arab Fashion Week has attracted a limited audience. Russian artist and fashion illustrator Alena Ogden said that “it’s very different from other countries,” with more evening gowns on display. Models present creations by French-Lebanese designer Ingie Chalhoub during the Arab Fashion Week in the United Arab Emirate of Dubai.—AFP photos.