Design Emergency

Abeer Seikaly on the Power of Memory

Mar 20, 2024

Architect Abeer Seikaly discusses drawing inspiration from ancestral Arab knowledge, weaving tradition into design work, and co-founding Amman Design Week. She emphasizes memory, resilience, and empowerment through design, reflecting on childhood experiences and emotional connections in traditional desert traditions. The podcast explores her unique approach to archiving and crafting cultural connections with Bedouin women, highlighting the importance of preserving cultural heritage in modern design challenges.

29:55

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Episode guests

Abeer Seikaly

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Quick takeaways

Abeer Seikaly utilizes memory and tradition as social technologies for cultural empowerment in her design work.

Seikaly emphasizes the importance of integrating scarcity, local wisdom, and human elements in design for sustainability.

Deep dives

Formative Childhood Experience Fuels Passion for Design

Abir Seikali's passion for design was sparked by a childhood memory where she witnessed the transformation of an architectural model of her future home into reality. This early exposure instilled in her a deep appreciation for the creative process and respect for construction. Through experiences like crafting a family house extension in ninth grade, Abir's determination to pursue design was solidified. Her childhood observations of family members creating art from scratch influenced her curiosity for expressive mediums and led her to discover the rich traditions of her family's way of life.

Introduction

4min

Reflections on Childhood Craftsmanship and Curiosity

2min

Exploration of Memory and Creative Process Through Collecting and Archiving

3min

Crafting Cultural Connections

6min

Cultural Heritage and Creative Design Thinking

16min

In this episode devoted to tradition as a source and a force to build a better future, Paola Antonelli speaks with Jordanian-Palestinian architect Abeer Seikaly, whose interdisciplinary work is centered around acts of memory––her own, her family’s, and her people’s. Her research draws from ancestral Arab knowledge––particularly the textile weaving craft of Bedouin women in the Jordanian section of the Badia desert––and wields tradition as a social technology for cultural empowerment.

Abeer discusses with Paola the lessons she has learned and how she has translated them in her design work and in the cultural landscape of Jordan, where she co-founded the biennial Amman Design Week. An avid diarist and archivist, Abeer continues to “read backwards while writing forwards” (her words) to explore and interrogate cultural narratives and themes in her work and teaching, underscoring her commitment to memory, resilience, and empowerment through design.

You can find images of Abeer’s work on Design Emergency’s Instagram platform, @design.emergency. Please join us for future episodes of Design Emergency when we will hear from other global design leaders who, like Abeer, are at the forefront of positive change.

Design Emergency is supported by a grant from the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts.

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Design Emergency

Abeer Seikaly on the Power of Memory

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

Formative Childhood Experience Fuels Passion for Design

Journaling and Collecting as Creative Thinking Tools

Embracing Scarcity and Cultural Heritage in Design

Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts