The Passion of Simplicity: Nedda El-Asmar

This September, the Mosaic Rooms hosts an exhibition from award-winning Belgian-Palestinian designer and silversmith Nedda El-Asmar. A collaboration with the Design Museum Ghent, the exhibition will include over 100 high-end domestic objects. A new design, ‘Mabkhara’ – a Middle Eastern incense burner for Zari – will be revealed for the first time.

Nedda counts world-renowned luxury design houses amongst her clients, including Hermès. Her projects range from the functional to the truly original, from the ‘Hermès Tout Simple’ cutlery range to ‘Central Park’, a sterling silver coffee and tea set with amaranth handles, a wedding present to the Crown Prince of Belgium.

Craftsmanship and originality, functionality and aesthetics and a passion for re-envisaging traditional objects are all central to El-Asmar’s work. Along with Hermès, she has also worked for Puiforcat, Robbe & Berking, Eternum, Gense, Villeroy & Boch, Obumex, Vange and Carl Mertens. Since March 2008, she has been working with the designer Erik Indekeu. She also leads the jewelry design and silversmithing department at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp.

Throughout her career El-Asmar’s designs have earned numerous awards and prizes. She was named Belgian Designer of 2007, and in 2008 was nominated for the second time for the Talents du Luxe. In January 2009, she received the prestigious bi-annual Flemish Cultural Award for Design 2008.

This is her first UK solo exhibition.

Private view: Thursday 8th September, 6.30-8.30pm

Check our website www.mosaicrooms.org for further related events!