Sharjah:The exquisite handcrafted collections created by Emirati women artisans of the Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council (Irthi), are being presented to a discerning, global audience via Adorno, a contemporary digital gallery platform for collectible design and craft.

As the outcome of a partnership agreement with Irthi, an affiliate of the NAMA Women Advancement Establishment (NAMA), Adorno is celebrating the work of the Council’s artisans on its e-commerce platform by showcasing a selection of Irthi’s product line to an audience of international buyers and collectors.

The Irthi product line puts works from the UAE on Adorno’s global platform for the first time, alongside several other design houses representing their countries.

First showcased at the iconic London Design Fair (LDF) in 2019, Irthi’s debut range of crafted design objects is the result of its two pioneering projects – Design Labs and Crafts Dialogue, both of which were inspired by the creative potential of cultural collaboration and designed for a global audience.

Handcrafted by artisans and trainees from Irthi’s Bidwa Social Development Programme, in collaboration with designers from the UAE, Pakistan, Japan, the US, the UK, Spain, Italy and Palestine, the collections are a fusion of Emirati crafts such as Talli, Safeefah, and clay, with international crafts such as Italian Murano glass work, Spanish leather making, Palestinian glass blowing, Japanese grass crafts, stone-carving, brass metal work, gold casting and furniture casting.
 
The luxury collections include jewellery, furniture, home decor, perfume bottles, incense burners and more. Ranging from sculptural totem-like chair stacks to landscape-inspired hand-blown Palestinian glass, it includes sand-cast and gold-cast products, masabeh (prayer beads), woven bags, glass-blown perfume bottles, oud madkhans (incense holders) and other hand-made products.

All the featured items can be ordered online through Adorno at https://adorno.design/product-category/country/united-arab-emirates/, and will be shipped to any part of the world.

Announcing the new partnership Reem BinKaram, Director of NAMA, said: “Featured alongside emerging talent as well as established names of the world’s foremost creative communities, Irthi’s presence on this digital platform will help us showcase the artistic expression of our craftswomen to a global, discerning audience.”

She added: “The move to a digital platform reflects Irthi’s full commitment to support our artisans. Our presence on Adorno will further add opportunities for our artisans to grow and flourish, and thereby contribute to the sustainability of this vital sector and the empowerment of the women working in it. What our artisans are doing holds immense value as they are not only revitalising the UAE’s intangible heritage, but also offering a refreshing perspective on traditional handmade crafts by imbuing them with modern appeal.” 

Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council is committed to the socioeconomic empowerment of women through the development of sustainable, woman-valued crafts communities across the Middle East, North Africa, South East and Central Asia. It seeks to preserve and promote Emirati craft heritage through engaging young generations and practitioners with their crafts legacy.

Irthi is an affiliate of NAMA Women Advancement Establishment (NAMA) and operates under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, wife of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah, Founder and Royal Patron of Irthi, Chairperson of NAMA.