Najla El Zein

Last updated
Najla El Zein
Born1983
Beirut
Alma mater
Occupation Artist, designer, visual artist
Awards
  • Tamayouz Excellence Award
Website najlaelzein.com  
[ edit on Wikidata]

Najla El Zein (born 1983) is a Lebanese-French artist and designer.

Contents

Biography

Najla El Zein was born in Beirut, Lebanon in 1983 . [1] [2] She grew up in Paris, where she lived from 1985 to 2008. [3] She studied at the Ecole Camondo, École Camondo earning degrees in Product Design and Interior Architecture. El Zein is currently based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, where she lives and works. [4]

El Zein's practice delves into the relationship between space and object, often exploring themes of transformation, emotional states, and the physicality of the body. Her work often takes the form of hand-sculpted pieces in natural materials such as stone, glass, clay, concrete, plaster.

Rooted in craftsmanship and shaped by an intuitive creative process, El Zein's work blends the notion of space and functionality with narrative and emotional depth. She is known for producing sculptural pieces that invite tactile engagement and often explore intimacy, identity, vulnerability, and human connection. Her practice emphasizes the journey of the making process, where human relations, craftsmanship, time, narrative and emotions are all interconnected, each element influencing and supporting the others. El Zein inscribes herself within the slow design movement, valuing a holistic and thoughtful approach to the process of creation. She emphasizes the importance of time, intention, and the deeper connections between design, making, and materials.

In 2022 El Zein completed Us, Her, Him, a major permanent public installation in Doha, commissioned by Qatar Museums Authority. The work was awarded the Dia-Al-Azzawi Prize for Public Art in 2024, in recognition of its exceptional craftsmanship and contribution to the public realm.

Following the 2020 Beirut explosion, El Zein produced a series of sculptural pieces titled 6.07, the name being a reference to the time of the blast. The proceeds from the sale of the pieces were donated to local NGO called Beb w’ Shebbek, Beit el Baraka, Beirut heritage initiative. [5] [6]

Her work has been exhibited internationally and acquired by the Victoria and Albert Museum, [3] London, and the Dallas Museum of Art, TX. Her work was also included in the exhibition Mirror Mirror: Reflections on Design at Chatsworth at Chatsworth House, and The New Transcendence at Friedman Benda Gallery, NY (both curated by Glenn Adamson). [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12]

She has studios in Amsterdam and Beirut. [3] [7] [13] [14]

References

  1. ↑ "Najla El Zein". www.friedmanbenda.com. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  2. ↑ "Najla El Zein – Biography". www.mutualart.com. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 Martin, Hannah (2019-02-17). "Lebanese Designer Najla El Zein Tells Her Story With a Sculptural Line of Furnishings". Architectural Digest. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
  4. ↑ "Najla El Zein – Friedman Benda". www.friedmanbenda.com. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
  5. ↑ Shehmir, Ayesha (June 5, 2021). "Product Designer Najla El Zein Pays Tribute To Beirut". Harper's Bazaar Arabia.
  6. ↑ Sawaya, Gioia (2020-09-24). "bebeirut architects partners with beb w shebbek to rebuild homes after the beirut blast". designboom | architecture & design magazine. Retrieved 2023-06-28.
  7. 1 2 "Mirror Mirror: Najla El Zein". www.chatsworth.org. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
  8. ↑ "Mirror Mirror: Reflections on Design at Chatsworth". www.chatsworth.org. 2023-06-15. Archived from the original on 2023-03-03. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
  9. ↑ Bertoli, Rosa (2023-03-17). "Chatsworth House design exhibition explores contemporary design themes in an eclectic setting". wallpaper.com. Retrieved 2023-03-17.
  10. ↑ Madlener, Adrian (2023-03-17). "How Can You Make an English Manor Filled With Old Masters Feel Contemporary? At Chatsworth House, the Answer Is Cutting-Edge Design". Artnet News. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
  11. ↑ Barandy, Kat (13 January 2024). "the new transcendence: friedman benda highlights artists from andrea branzi to samuel ross". designboom architecture & design magazine. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
  12. ↑ "Friedman Benda NY considers design as motifs of ‘The New Transcendence’". www.stirpad.com. Retrieved 2024-03-04.
  13. ↑ Rote, Laura (2021-11-11). "Lebanese Designer Najla El Zein Lets Stone Tell the Story". Sixtysix Magazine. Retrieved 2023-06-24.
  14. ↑ Donoghue, Katy. "Najla El Zein Personal Journey Finds its Form". Whitewall. Retrieved 2023-06-28.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.