As a tribute to Earth Day, which is an annual commemoration that focuses on innovative ways to restore the world’s ecosystems, we asked FTA Prize 2021’s four finalists in the Debut Talent category to create fashion designs inspired by sustainability and nature. Here’s a look at their original sketches.
AbdelGader El Tayeb Al Sadig, El Tayeb Nation
Earth Day brings forth mixed emotions for Sudanese fashion designer AbdelGader El Tayeb Al Sadig, founder of El Tayeb Nation. “It makes me think about the polluted world we live in, about our footprint that is catastrophic and that will have a dramatic impact for the next generation,” he says. For the Earth Day sketch, he reinterpreted a symbol that is at the core of his brand. “The inspiration behind my drawing is the symbol of the mother and her child, inspired by the goddess of nature Isis feeding Horus, a nomadic citizen of El Tayeb Nation who carries her child. She wears a Brancusi hat, heels made of Sudanese palm leafs, a toub skirt with the graphic pattern signature of my work and an officer suit.”
Roudha Al Mazroei
Roudha Al Mazroei turned to her childhood for inspiration when creating the Earth Day sketch. “It was inspired by a story I heard when I was younger, and the story speaks of a goddess who watches over the earth during Earth Day,” says the Qatari fashion designer. For her, sustainability involves reusing, recycling and restoring.
When asked to explain what sustainability meant to her, Mina Tahir replied: “Thoughtful, intentional and deliberate.” The Egyptian fashion designer says that her sketch is her “mythical vision of Mother Nature if she were to wear a vintage Ballets Russes dress that embodies her spirit,” adding that Earth Day “represents consciousness in everything we do, a time to reflect on our choices and how we can align our principles with actions that are not detrimental to the environment.”
Malik Thomas Jalil Kydd
For Jordan-based, Iraqi designer Malik Thomas Jalil Kydd, Earth Day is a reminder that action needs to be taken to promote sustainability and eco-friendliness. The fashion designer explains that his sketch is inspired by the country in which he lives: “In the yearly calendar of Jordan, there is a short spell in the springtime where the ecology evolves into something astonishing. The vibrant mix of flora and terrain inspired this sketch: bold, piercing colors among swirling motifs, oil pastel and ink sketch on silk twill.”
