Bahrain’s Maraj Studio Wins Abwab 2025 Commission at Dubai Design Week

Dubai Design Week has named Bahrain-based architecture and design studio Maraj as the winner of the prestigious Abwab 2025 commission with their project, 'Stories of the Isle and the Inlet'. Founded by Latifa Alkhayat and Maryam Aljomairi, Maraj's installation, ‘Stories of the Isle and the Inlet’, will be unveiled from November 4th to the 9th, 2025, at Dubai Design District (d3).
Responding to this year’s theme, 'In the Details', Maraj's project draws on ornamentalism and traditional craftsmanship to capture the layered identity of Nabih Saleh, a small island set between Tubli’s wetlands and Sitra’s industrial edge. Once known for its greenery and oral traditions, the island today is marked by the tension between ecological fragility and urban encroachment. Working with local artisans, embroiders and tailors, Maraj has created a textile enclosure that stitches together imagery of Nabih Saleh’s flora, fauna and waters, aiming to position the island as a living archive of ecology, myth and memory. The installation, influenced by the ornate Bahraini thob al nashil, highlights seasonal cycles, native species, and the cultural memory of the island. Its prismatic mesh layers are both ornamental and symbolic, reframing embroidery as a form of storytelling rather than decoration.
“We thrive in the space where research, material experimentation and design overlap,” the founders explain. “Through interviews with islanders and close study of the habitat, we’ve built a visual narrative that invites visitors to reflect on what is at risk and what can still be preserved.” Unlike previous editions that featured multiple regional designers, Abwab 2025 focuses on a single pavilion, allowing visitors to immerse fully in one story. Since its launch in 2015, the program has supported more than 180 designers across Asia and Africa, commissioning works that respond to social, cultural and environmental urgencies.