- December 30, 2022
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Fashion stars Camila Coelho, Jessica Kahawaty don Arab … – Arab News
https://arab.news/59wjs
DUBAI: As 2022 comes to an end, fashion stars around the world are putting on their best outfits to celebrate this eventful week.
Brazilian it-girl Camila Coelho and Australian-Lebanese model Jessica Kahawaty championed two of the trendiest Arab labels this week.
Coelho, who is currently enjoying her holiday season in Brazil, wore a pair of sunglasses by Lebanese eyewear designer Karen Wazen. Coelho wore the Ciara shades in orange, one of Wazen’s best sellers, during her vacation.
The blogger-turned-entrepreneur, who is a long-time fan of Wazen’s designs, paired her stylish shades with an orange swimsuit by London-based Albanian womenswear designer Nensi Dojaka.
Coelho, who has a beauty brand called Elaluz and a fashion line called the Camila Coelho Collection, shared pictures on Instagram with her 9.8 million followers as she enjoyed a beach day in Trancoso, a district in Porto Seguro in Bahia.
Meanwhile, Kahawaty, who is based in Dubai, received two Amina Muaddi gifts this week. The fashion star took to Instagram to share pictures of the designer’s blue see-through crystal-embellished bag, which the Jordanian Romanian shoemaker shared on her page.
The social media influencer also posted a picture of her new Dalida 140 PVC platform mules. “No words. These are insane,” Kahawaty wrote on her Stories.
Wazen launched her debut collection of eyewear in December 2018. The first line of five styles came in acetate and stainless steel and in an array of colors, from neon to tortoiseshell.
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Now with 44 stylish shades, the label has gained the nod of approval from international celebrities including British-Albanian singer Dua Lipa, reality television star Kourtney Kardashian, French model Cindy Bruna and American singer Becky G.
Muaddi, who recently received the designer of the year prize at the 2022 FN Achievement Awards in New York, launched her eponymous footwear line in August 2018.
The label’s distinct pumps, sling-backs, mules, boots and sandals in an array of vibrant colors and holographic designs have since garnered a loyal checklist of famous fans, including Gigi Hadid, Kylie Jenner and Hailey Bieber Baldwin.
DUBAI: Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea International Film Festival on Thursday was one of the main sponsors at the star-studded LuisaViaRoma for UNICEF Winter Gala, held on the Caribbean island of Saint Barthelemy.
British singer and songwriter Rita Ora posed on the beige-colored carpet with her husband, New Zealand filmmaker Taika Waititi.
Ora wore a black gown that featured a cropped top, mirrored embellishments and a feathered train. The dress was from London-based designer David Koma’s spring/summer 2023 ready-to-wear collection.
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She was not the only A-list celebrity in attendance. British actress Naomi Watts, US musician Maxwell, Czech model and actress Karolina Kurkova and US model Camille Kostek also attended the charity party, along with the CEO of RSIFF, Saudi producer Mohammed Al-Turki.
RSIFF is is the founding partner of the glamorous charity night, which aims to raise funds in support of UNICEF’s projects all over the world.
The event, in its second edition, featured a gala dinner with a live auction of exclusive items, artworks and experiences.
The dinner saw performances by US singer Lenny Kravitz and Canadian rapper Drake.
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The singers performed some of their most famous hits including “American Woman,” by Kravitz, and “Nonstop” by Drake.
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Last year’s ball helped raise more than $4 million to support UNICEF’s work in providing care and protection to vulnerable children across the globe.
Souad Massi
‘Sequana’
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Following up her exceptional 2019 LP, “Oumniyah,” the legendary French-Algerian songwriter released her 10th album this year – a poignant showcase that further broadens the sonic palette of her trademark brand of Algerian Chaabi and inimitable dexterity on the guitar. Adorned with all the hallmarks of a Souad Massi record, “Sequana” mixes folk, country, rock, calypso, and bossa with poetic lyrics, speckled with themes including relationships, compassion and love. It even features singer/songwriter Piers Faccini, and a stunning Arabic-language rendition of “Hurt,” the Nine Inch Nails track famously covered by Johnny Cash. “Sequana” is an unmissable addition to Massi’s extraordinary catalog.
Tanjaret Daghet
‘Mareed’
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Although they have kept busy as session musicians and collaborated with the likes of Arab indie royalty Zeid Hamdan (on 2019’s “Beit”), the Beirut-based Syrian trio had not released a studio album since their cathartically magnetic 2013 debut, “180 Degrees.” Almost a decade later, Tanjaret Daghet have proved that the wait was indeed worth it, as they embrace their experimental side in much the same way that Radiohead completely reinvented themselves on their electronica-infused masterpiece “Kid A.” The band expertly weave an aural embroidery oscillating between psychedelia, delectably layered vocal harmonies and meditative instrumental passages that illustrate the depth of the connection between the three musicians. “Mareed” is an artistic triumph from a group whose unique sound has been sorely missed.
Ÿuma
‘HANNET LEKLOUB’
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Only a year after starting their career in 2015, the Tunisian duo scored a major hit with “Smek,” a track from their debut album that was remixed by Rey&Kjavik and went on to gain more than 10 million streams. Since then, Sabrine Jenhani and Ramy Zoghlami have performed across Europe and North America, broadcasting a distinctive medley of indie-alternative folk and emotive lyrics sung in the Tunisian dialect of Derja to a growing listenership that often forms a lasting, intimate bond with their music. Ÿuma’s third studio effort, “HANNET LEKLOUB,” balances the melancholy and elegant melodicism of their previous releases with earworm hooks and tender vocalization to deliver a mature, memorable and immensely enjoyable LP.
Adonis
‘Hadis El Layl’
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With their sixth LP, Adonis have perfected the formula of danceable pop, alt-rock dynamism and anthemic songwriting that they began crafting in 2012 with their debut single, “Stouh Adonis.” The Lebanese foursome present a moving collection of love songs — with the title track and the heartrending “Ekhsarak” as standouts — that culminates in “Ma Endi Fekra,” an ingenious pastiche of two styles of Arabic music battling in a blistering commentary on the Arabic music industry. The album’s closing opus employs the electric guitar and oriental mizmar as an embodiment of this artistic skirmish and is some of the most profoundly adventurous work that the band have produced thus far.
Gultrah Sound System
‘PRELUDE’
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Led by singer and guitarist Halim Yousfi, the Tunisian neo-reggae pioneers have gone through various lineup changes since starting out in 2006, but one element of their whirlwind combo of rap, jazz, funk and afrobeat has always remained uniform: They are uncompromising innovators and pepper their songs with incisive humor and politically provocative messages. Their latest album, “PRELUDE,” is a delightfully listenable amalgam of vibrant, rhythmic percussion, playful violins, a spirited brass section and ferociously honest socio-economic commentary on the travails of daily life in Tunis. A veritable gem that crystalizes Gultrah Sound System’s status as one of the region’s most exciting acts.
Tinariwen
‘Kel Tinariwen’
Although this is, strictly speaking, a reissue of a 1992 recording, the album was previously only released in Mali — and only on cassette. “Kel Tinariwen” is a seminal record from a band recognized as one of the architects of the Kel Tamasheq desert blues movement. This Grammy Award-winning collective of Tuareg musicians from the Sahara Desert region of northern Mali has been around for more than 40 years but remains decisively relevant. If anything, the addition of synthesizers to their idiosyncratic guitarwork demonstrates the group’s enthusiasm for reframing their music and making it accessible for a whole new generation of fans.
Cairokee
‘Roma’
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Many established artists fall into the trap of complacency and end up ignoring the little voice in their heads that nags at them to rethink and reimagine. Cairokee have never shied away from returning to the drawing board wholesale, but on their bold, seventh studio album, the Egyptian rock visionaries are truly charting a new direction for their music. “Roma” is an audacious foray into pop and trap-tinged melodies — the inclusion of hip-hop luminary Marwan Pablo, for instance — by a band who made their name as the rock soundtrack to Egypt’s 2011 revolution. The LP swept the charts across the country’s music platforms and shines on as one of the most daring additions to Cairokee’s already illustrious output.
Idreesi
‘Ma7boobi’
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Breaking out on his own from electro-acoustic collective Garaseen, whose 2018 EP made waves across the Arab indie landscape, Idreesi built on the momentum sparked by his debut LP, 2020’s “Loon El Shams,” to ignite a creative flame that reverberates with aplomb across his latest pop outing. “Ma7boobi” is an affective anthology of material told from the perspectives of fictional characters envisaged by the songwriter, whose penchant for storytelling stems from his experience in theater and as an actor. The album is a deeply expressive chronicle of the singer’s personal experiences and regularly intrigues with its novel use of unconventional instrumentation to convey raw emotion. A must-hear.
El Rass
‘Ard El Khof’
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Rapper and music producer El Rass (aka Mazen El-Sayed) is known for not mincing his words. Following in the footsteps of 2020’s “Bab Al-Doukhoul,” one of the region’s most inventive hip-hop pacesetters delves into the themes of economic collapse and hardship in his native Lebanon with bruising wit and eye-watering lyrical legerdemain. The boisterous rhyme slinger is in scorching form on “Ard El Khof” (Land Of Fear), dealing out verse upon verse cadenced to perfection and accompanied by a searing entourage of pulsating beats and lusciously dark synth.
DUBAI: Animated film “Lamya’s Poem,” about a young Syrian refugee, is set to be released in North America on Feb. 21, 2023.
The movie, directed and written by Alex Kronemer, tells the story of a 12-year-old girl named Lamya who meets a poet — in a dream world — and must help him write a poem that will save her life. When Lamya escapes the war in her country, she gets a poetry book by the 13th-century Persian poet, Rumi.
“Lamya’s Poem” stars Canadian Egyptian actor Mena Massoud as Rumi, Canadian actress Millie Davis as Lamya and Pakistani American actor Faran Tahir as Baha Walad.
“We were inspired by accounts of displaced Syrians reading poetry and literature in refugee camps to help overcome the trauma of their displacement from home, friends, and family,” Kronemer told Deadline.
“At its center, ‘Lamya’s Poem’ is about the magical relationship between artists and their audiences that can cross time and space to help both heal and transcend difficult circumstances. While rooted in loss, the film ultimately is a life-affirming and family-friendly tale,” he added.
The movie will be available to rent or own on digital HD internet, cable and satellite platforms.
‘Elden Ring’
Given the sheer scale of this open-world role-playing game, it’s quite possible it will feature in similar lists next year. Even after playing for dozens of hours, there are still so many discoveries to be made that for all but the most dedicated of gamers, much of “Elden Ring” will still qualify as a new game deep into 2023. The game looks beautiful, and technically it was both familiar and challenging — meaning that while the combat system was fairly easy to get to grips with, the wide range of skilled enemies and powerful bosses meant you could never relax your guard. This hugely ambitious game is now the benchmark for all future RPGs.
‘Wordle’
At the other end of the development spectrum was 2022’s most written-about game, “Wordle.” (Yes, it launched on the web in 2021, but its popularity really bloomed in December last year when developer Josh Wardle added the emoji-style display of guesses that has become ubiquitous on social networks.) Its beauty lies in its simplicity. Every day there’s a single new five-letter word that players must guess/work out within six attempts. The greatest satisfaction generally comes from getting it right second time, since the first time is pure guesswork. The mechanics of the game are so straightforward that pretty much any English-speaking person, from kids to pensioners, can pick up and play immediately. And it became a daily ritual for millions, sparking a real feeling of community around it. Wardle famously sold the game to the New York Times Company for a reported seven-figure sum.
‘Stray’
One of the many COVID-19-delayed releases of 2022, “Stray” was worth the wait. You play as a lost cat wandering through a run-down cybercity populated by droids. The main tactics, as you might expect from a cat, are stealth and mischief. While the droids aren’t too much trouble, the city is also home to more-dangerous creatures from which you must escape if you’re ever to find your kin. The way the developers managed to capture the lovable but weird feline character of the eponymous lead meant this dystopian sci-fi game was easy to get emotionally involved in.
‘God of War Ragnarok’
The Spartan god-killer Kratos and his troublesome son Atreus continued to explore the world of Norse mythology in this action-adventure, the follow up to 2018’s “God of War.” Set three years after that game, “Ragnarok” covers the titular world-ending event predicted at the end of the previous game. Fans would be familiar with the combat system, but there were some nice upgrades, including far more versatility for Kratos’ shield, and Atreus’ vastly improved magical abilities. With nine realms to discover and explore, “Ragnarok” offered great value for money, while the generally excellent voice acting and characterization made for an immersive experience.
‘Neon White’
Has there ever been a more chaotic (in a good way) game than “Neon White”? A hectic, no-time-to-think single-person shooter/platformer/puzzler/parkour speedrunner that demands 100 percent concentration but does its best to distract you with a cast of incredibly (though amusingly) annoying enemies. Demons are wreaking havoc in hell. You — an assassin named White — must wipe out as many as you can for the chance to live permanently in Heaven. But you’re also playing against other demon slayers (also annoying) chasing the same prize. Along the way you’ll pick up various cards that will grant you improved weaponry, but that you can choose to discard to gain special movement abilities that make traversing the divine environment much easier. “Neon White” will leave you breathless.
‘Norco’
Developers Geography of Robots used the skeleton of a classic point-and-click adventure game to create this beautiful and genuinely moving exploration of rural decay and of someone searching for purpose. It’s set in an ‘alternate version’ of the titular small town in Louisiana, which — in both real life and the game — is home to a huge petroleum refinery. Kay has returned to the town following the death of her mother. “Norco” has some of the best writing of any video game (of this year or any other). The elements of magical realism that drift into the downbeat narrative somehow serve to make the story even more grounded and affecting. It’s easy to get lost in its haunting atmosphere.
‘Immortality’
2022’s most original game was this full-motion video effort from director Sam Barlow. Ostensibly, players are attempting to discover what has happened to the fictional model-turned-actress Marissa Marcel. She was the star of three unreleased movies shot three decades apart, and the player must run through clips from those three films (as well as interviews, TV appearances and behind-the-scenes footage), pausing and clicking on items or people to gain further information. Piecing together the non-chronological plot is tricky enough, but it’s when you get to the story behind the story that “Immortality” becomes a game that will occupy your brain for hours, even when you’re not actually playing it.
DUBAI: Here are some highlights from Ukranian artist Anna Chekh’s Dubai exhibition ‘Faceless’ exhibition, which runs until Jan. 10 at BOCCARA Gallery in Dubai
‘Shadow Man’
The Thailand-based Ukranian contemporary artist Anna Chekh’s second exhibition in Dubai once again has a faceless “Shadow Man” as its central theme. It is supposed to symbolize the way that people have “removed themselves from the reality of physical interactions and rely on virtual social networks to experience life while remaining anonymous,” according to the gallery.
‘Modern Society’
This piece, Chekh wrote on Instagram, is “a vivid satire on what modern society looks like. Expressed in cariacaturesque emoji manner, the pattern of horses and buttocks reflects a limited range of emotions and the monotony of digital reality.” Chekh’s belief, according to a press release, is that an artist’s obligation is “to restore energy to society.”
‘Chaos’
“By being easy to find, yet hard to recognize, Anna’s Shadow Man in each artwork reveals society’s desire to be faceless,” the gallery’s statement continues. “Chaos” is a good example of the artist’s attempt to blend “contemporary surrealism with expressionism to showcase current social topics through cartoonish characters.”