The final award winner of the yearlong British Council Young Creative Entrepreneurship Award series has been announced as Meitha Al Mazrooei, founder and editor of WTD Magazine, an architecture and design publication based in Dubai.
Meitha presented her business pitch to three industry expert judges at the A4 Space in Alserkal Avenue and was unanimously chosen as the most deserving recipient of the award to represent the U.A.E. along with other global winners during the U.K. industry tour in September.
WTD Magazine, in just 5 issues, has been receiving international critical acclaim across the sector, being listed on the Royal Institute of British Architects bookshop blog as a recommended read as well as being bookmarked by Dutch architecture platform FA as the emerging voice in the current urbanism debate in the Gulf and beyond.
After graduating from the American University of Sharjah in 2010, Meitha worked towards realising the production of WTD Magazine and describes it as "an architecture and design publication which acts as an essential component of design discourse in the Middle East. The publication documents the thought process by which our cities are built and acts as a channel to project possibilities. Through community interaction WTD intends to provoke a reaction from the public in order to reconstruct our current built environment".
"The Idea of WTD comes from the Arabic word "Watad" which is the anchor that holds the tent to the ground. In some ways WTD Magazine hopes to become the anchor of all things architectural and design in the Middle East. Being a non-glossy publication we hope to call attention to the non-glossy spaces in the Middle East".
Soniya Kirpalani from the judging panel, said, "Meitha offers a reflection of the geography of U.A.E. as she questions, analyses and addresses the region's architecture and emerging landscape. Meitha shows great vision, passion and focus through her work, launching the premiere interactive publication WaTaD, which offers deep insight, through well researched articles and visuals on the region's architecture, art and design and its challenges." George Katodrytis, Associate Professor of Architecture at the American University of Sharjah, said, "WTD Magazine has reached global recognition while keeping its unique character. It continues to highlight regional architecture, design and cultural projects and discourse while keeping its alternative magazine character. Each issue is focussed, well researched and thematic. It has a viable commercial future that can expand further to other platforms." Meitha is the final recipient of the British Council Young Creative Entrepreneur Award 2014 and joins fellow winners Iman Ben Chaibah (Digital Publishing) and Salem Al Qasimi (Culture) as the U.A.E. representative to the U.K. industry tour in September.
Clare Grundy, Acting Country Director, United Arab Emirates, British Council, said, "Often the global perception of architecture in the Middle East conjures images bold and glossy high rise buildings that defy physics. What Meitha and her colleagues at WTD Magazine have been able to do is challenge these ideas and raise the profile of the breadth of consideration paid to all aspects of spatial and architectural design in this region to cater for the diverse and transient nature of its population. Meitha has an extremely strong vision for her business, with clear international support and recognition in her sector; she has found a credible voice for a wider appreciation of the architecture and design in the U.A.E. and the Middle East as a whole and will be a welcome addition to our global cohort of Young Creative Entrepreneurs in 2014 that will benefit from the U.K. study tour experience." The Young Creative Entrepreneur Fashion and Design Award is the concluding award of three International Young Creative Entrepreneur (IYCE) awards, being run across the U.A.E. in 2014 by the British Council. The YCE Awards were designed to celebrate the global achievements of young entrepreneurs across the creative industries, and make a significant contribution to their ability to access international markets. So far 366 young entrepreneurs have spent time with industry experts in their field in the UK and 82 have travelled abroad as part of the programme. The IYCE programme is unique in its recognition of the entrepreneurial ability vital alongside creative talent in the development of a competitive and sustainable creative economy.
Source: WAM