A love for design

Anyone and their mother who knows me understands that my true passions are art & design. Whether it be sculpting and watercolours or music and interior design - I am all over it. Hands-on art makes me feel like I can creatively take control of my life whereas art you practice such as interior design and singing makes me feel like the space around me is more of my own.

That being said, I can't wait for February because Chelsea College of Arts is coming back to Dubai for their renowned short courses! There really is something for everyone, including a three-day short course dedicated to Curating Contemporary Art. If you are interested in learning more about the enormous scope of contemporary art and it’s practice internationally, you may be interested in this extremely specialised course that will focus on the explicitly global perspective on the current role of the curator, prompting students to approach the field critically, theoretically and through best practice in commissioning, exhibition-making, programming and art writing in museums and galleries.

CCA is also hosting a specialist portfolio of Interior Design and Interior Decoration short courses. If there are any budding interior designers out there, definitely check out their course list and choose from a range of courses that are suitable for both practicing interior designers looking to learn new skills or update their existing ones, or beginners wishing to pursue the subject as a hobby, each course is an excellent opportunity to learn.

CCA even asked its team of professional tutors to unveil their top design trends for 2014.

·    2014 is about optimism both in terms of colour and pattern - softer shades of bright, bold colours will become available allowing people to pair the bolder colours with more neutral ones

·    Yellow will be on trend but can be a challenge to work with so it will need to be paired with a grey, taupe or sand colour to get the correct accent within a space

·    Geometric patterns have been dominant for the last few years in terms of textiles and pattern and 2014 will see the angles being replaced with softer classical patterns

·    The most exhilarating homes are ones that have objects that provoke conversations. For example, take a 1950s bamboo Chippendale Chair paint it grey or taupe then add the colour or pattern in the fabric. One of the best ways to incorporate colours is by accessories. 

·    The future of design will be divided into two - one will convey our desire to look to the future to tech-savvy advancements as our way to survive this fast paced living and the other is our need to renew some of the past traditions in a quest for authenticity

If you aren't familiar with CCA's qualifications, just take a look at their list of alumni including Alexander McQueen, Anish Kapoor, Mojeb Al-Dousari and Florence Welch. Have a look at their website to see all the offered courses, I am really hoping to have a chance to try one of them out!

www.arts.ac.uk/chelsea/courses/short-courses/middle-east