< PreviousWoolwoman’s products incorporate original designs inspired by Palestinian rugs and motifs which further serves to retain the rich and vibrant heritage HBI_060_80-83_Features Lora Solous_13206286.indd 8019/03/2024 13:59Ramallah-based designer Lara Salous is preserving the Palestinian heritage craft of weaving through Woolwoman, a new social enterprise THE ART OF RESISTANCE Words by JUMANA ABDEL-RAZZAQ, Photography by GREG. C. HOLLAND The FEATURES 81 HarpersBazaarArabia.com/Culture/Interiors Spring 2024 HBI_060_80-83_Features Lora Solous_13206286.indd 8119/03/2024 13:59Palestinian designer and artist Lara Salous has recently brought her dream to life. In December, her initiative Woolwoman was offi cially registered as a Palestinian enterprise in the National Commerce Ministry, amid supply shortages and challenging odds. Based in Ramallah, where she works as a design researcher, Lara is keeping alive the Palestinian heritage craft of weaving through her work at Woolwoman. Th is is an enterprise which connects Palestinian interiors, local materials and the industry to create contemporary furniture pieces, like wool chairs and loom chairs, with the help of local craftswomen hailing from across the Palestinian territories. “Our concept designs originated from the Palestinian handwoven rug, and stems from three main pillars: the woman, the wool and the loom,” Lara explains. “By merging craftsmanship, materiality, and rhythmic weaving movements, we transform primitive interior elements into contemporary furniture.” Th e main inspiration for her designs is the Palestinian Bedouin woman – the architect of her home. “She carefully designs and weaves the tent, providing a sturdy shelter for the family. Inside, the woven rug spreads gentle warmth, framing the family's daily life,” explains the designer. Her organisation also holds workshops for Palestinian youth to help teach and revive the lost art by introducing inherent spinning, weaving, and dyeing methods to new generations. “Learning makes us connected to the past, to the land, and to our tangible heritage,” she expresses. Now responding to the current turmoil, the designer has in the last four months shifted her focus on creating craft that incorporates symbols of resistance. “We do this by collectively weaving the resistance triangles into our wool textiles and artworks, our clothes and ornaments,” Lara shares. Palestinian women are now also more open to providing the enterprise with wool. “Th is is a form of resistive economy.” Th e collective is experiencing a number of challenges with sourcing materials. “Our work is a network between the city, the Bedouin communities, and with a few villages in the south of Hebron,” Lara says. “At Woolwoman, we tend to build a woven net between our disconnected territories.” Th e designer is continuing to showcase and bring awareness to her work and that of her community internationally, recently concluding an exhibition at Madrid’s Casa Árabe in February alongside 15 other Palestinian artists. Lara was selected from more than 100 candidates by way of a contemporary art initiative held in Palestine as part of the prestigious European programme, ‘European Spaces for Culture’ by the European Union National Institutes for Culture (EUNIC) for the exhibition Tadafuq: Palestinian artists in motion. Titled Around Th eir Hands, the showcase highlighted the work of hand-spinning natural wool as a local resource and craft, one that is quickly collapsing. “Th e work presents hand movement as a living tool, a source of hope, and a bearer of knowledge.” woolwoman.com HBI_060_80-83_Features Lora Solous_13206286.indd 8219/03/2024 14:00 The FEATURES “ L E A R N I N G M A K E S U S C O NNE C T E D T O TH E P A S T , T O T H E L A N D , A N D T O O U R T A N G I B L E HE R I T A G E ” Lara Sa lou s The wool is organically hand-spun and sourced using an environmentally conscious selection from indigenous sheep found within Palestine From left: Lara Salous merges craftsmanship and materiality to weave a network between disconnected territories; Vibrant red adds vigour to the seat's charm 83 HarpersBazaarArabia.com/Culture/Interiors Spring 2024 HBI_060_80-83_Features Lora Solous_13206286.indd 8319/03/2024 14:0084 HarpersBazaarArabia.com/Culture/Interiors Spring 2024 HOM E TR U T H S Photography by CAMERON BENSLEY Creative Direction by LAURA JANE BROWN Styling by CHARLOTTE MARSH-WILLIAMS From cherished keepsakes to miscellaneous spares – it’s within these charmingly cluttered nooks that the most compelling stories and objects reside Chair, Dhs4,350, Driade. Jug, Dhs1,450, Ginori 1735. Jar, Dhs625, Laetitia Rouget. Jumbo servers, Dhs355, Nashi Home. Hand cream, Dhs125, Aesop. Vase, Dhs2,300, Corsi Design. Mickey Rock by Arik Levy, Dhs2,100, Leblon Delienne. Plate, Dhs350, Laetitia Rouget. Coca-Cola set of three books, Dhs395; Valentino Rosso book, Dhs980, both Assouline. All available at THAT Concept Store HBI_060_84_89_That Concept store Interiors_13225750.indd 8419/03/2024 16:4185 HarpersBazaarArabia.com/Culture/Interiors Spring 2024 The FEATURES HBI_060_84_89_That Concept store Interiors_13225750.indd 8519/03/2024 16:41HBI_060_84_89_That Concept store Interiors_13225750.indd 8619/03/2024 16:4187 HarpersBazaarArabia.com/Culture/Interiors Spring 2024 The FEATURES Facing page, from left: Vase, Dhs210, Polspotten. Candleholder, Dhs1,50, Ginori 1735. Sweater, Dhs3,300, Hellessy. Bowl, Dhs950, Ginori 1735. Candle, Dhs95, Orient 499. Tray, Dhs500, Corsi Design. Top and bottom glasses, Dhs305 for four; Middle glasses, Dhs335 for four, all Polspotten. All available at THAT Concept Store This page, from top: Boots, Dhs3,400, Paris Texas. Mug, Dhs105, Ichendorf Milano. Vase, Dhs2,370, Poltrona Frau. Candle, Dhs695, Ginori 1735. Burberry book, Dhs760, Assouline. Christo and Jeanne-Claude book, Dhs110, Taschen. Backgammon board, Dhs13,500, Nada Debs. All available at THAT Concept Store HBI_060_84_89_That Concept store Interiors_13225750.indd 8719/03/2024 16:4188 HarpersBazaarArabia.com/Culture/Interiors Spring 2024 HBI_060_84_89_That Concept store Interiors_13225750.indd 8819/03/2024 16:4189 HarpersBazaarArabia.com/Culture/Interiors Spring 2024 The FEATURES Egg Timer, Dhs3,050, Venini. Tray, Dhs455, Corsi Design. Necklace chain, Dhs5,350; Necklace charm, Dhs13,500, both Marla Aaron. Chic Stays book, Dhs420, Assouline. Jumbo servers, Dhs355, Nashi Home. Pen, Dhs730, Pineider 1774. Plate, Dhs260, Laetitia Rouget. Jeans, Dhs900, Agolde. Sweater, Dhs2,600, Mira Mikati. From top: Candle, Dhs650; Mug, Dhs650; Candle, Dhs575, all Ginori 1735. Tray, Dhs765, Nashi Home. All available at THAT Concept Store Photographer’s assistant: Scar Salario HBI_060_84_89_That Concept store Interiors_13225750.indd 8919/03/2024 16:41Next >