JERUSALEM: Palestinians stage fashion show inspired by ancient civilisations in Jerusalem

Record ID: 197724

  • Title: JERUSALEM: Palestinians stage fashion show inspired by ancient civilisations in Jerusalem
  • Date: 17th December 2009
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) MODEL, DANA ALAMI, SAYING: "Not many people know about the old civilizations, but now even we learned more about them which is very nice."
  • Embargoed: 1st January 2010 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: Fashion
  • Reuters ID: LVA1HMTKLB1DRQKB30ILT33EW5UJ
  • Story Text: Palestinians celebrate ancient and modern culture in the disputed city of Jerusalem through a fashion show showcasing fashion inspired by ancient civilisations which lived in the city, as well as by traditional Palestinian dress.
    Palestinian designers showcased a wide-ranging creative collection mixing the traditional with the old to illustrate the diverse culture and history of the city of Jerusalem.
    Show organiser Amal Nashashibi said that her aim was to introduce new generations to traditional in a way that would appeal to them.
    "What we tried to do is revive the old dress and the old heritage, the beautiful part of history, to introduce it to the new generations and get it slowly back into today's designs. It is an attempt by us to introduce heritage to the new generations without them feeling we are taking them back too much into the past " she said.
    Nashashibi described the show as a "Multi coloured dress worthy of its history and its essence."
    The show was put together by 20 young designers under the supervision of professional designers Maro Sandrouni and Hamada Attallah.
    For Attallah the fashion show was a culmination of years of work with Palestinian women in refugee camps, teaching them traditional methods and styles of designs.
    "For the past two years, I have been working with women in refugee camps teaching them embroidery to try and revive it, because people are used to cross-stitch and modern embroidery, and work that used be made by women in the past is being forgotten. That is why I like to use it in my designs." Attallah said.
    The designers completed 60 dresses, each with their own story about the city of Jerusalem, calling the show 'Jerusalem across the ages' to reflect the changing face of the city across time, life before and after the barrier wall and the change in cultures and society around them.
    For the model Najwan Yassin, the show reflects how she feels about Jerusalem.
    "I wanted to be part of it because it represents Jerusalem, it represents the face of the city, it is very nice to be part of something about and for Jerusalem, about our homeland. It is very nice and it serves our country." she said.
    Other members of the audience were more critical of the show.
    "What I wanted to see more of in this show, was more of our heritage. Most of the clothes were modern and it was not always obvious the era the dresses came from, which was from the Ottoman years? for example. We wanted to see stuff more specific to our history and heritage, it is true that there is modernisation and new things are being introduced into our civilization but we want to see more of our history." said Muna Mashour.
    For audience member Nazmi Abu Maziar, the show was meant to carry a message of peace and love.
    "There is no doubt the show was beautiful. The show sent a message to the whole world that Jerusalem is the city of love, peace , culture, and the shared visions. We are sending a message to the world, a message of peace, love, optimism, and hope. And we hope that the world understands our message that we are always looking for peace." he said.
    The aim was for the dresses to reflect old and new civilizations from the Canaanite to the Ottoman times as well as the last century's political and social conflict in the city.
    The project organised by al-Mirsat organisation saw amateur designers work with the professionals over a 12-month period. They learned a number of skills including sketching, design, embroidery and jewellery making.
    'Jerusalem across the ages' was sponsored by the Palestinian Welfare association.
    Al-Mirsat organization said that the most important outcome of the show was the work and effort that went into dress-making, which made palestinians more aware of modern fashion trends and how to incorporate their history and culture into the designs.
    There are some 2.7 million Palestinians and 500,000 Israeli settlers living in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The holy city is at the heart of the peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians, because of the religious significance attached to it from both sides.
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