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The professional designer tier will constitute a custom-designed collection of pearl jewellery pieces, created by ten invited luxury brands inspired by the rich Arabian pearling heritage and represented in a modern and contemporary fashion.
The student tier is a competition for final year students from schools that offer a minimum two-year full time jewellery design course, spanning a broad geographical market.
Ahmed bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman, DMCC said:
"This international pearl jewellery design programme will both highlight Dubai as a centre for the global pearl trade and increase the visibility of pearls in the fashion industry. 'Pearl Essence' will invite participation from the global marketplace and provide a neutral and innovative programme for the international pearl community."
For the professional designer tier, DMCC is currently in discussions with leading luxury jewellery brands including members of the Dubai Pearl Exchange to create one unique piece each for the collection.
The entries will tour international jewellery trade exhibitions before being auctioned by Christie's with the proceeds being donated to charity.
DMCC is also working with 44 jewellery design schools spanning Australia, China, India, Japan, Lebanon, Singapore, South Africa and Turkey to solicit entries before the early 2009 deadline.
The student entries will be judged by an international jury, chaired by DMCC and comprising trade journalists and professional jewellery designers.
The designs will be evaluated for commercial design, wearability, theme-based creativity and the use of pearls as the main design feature.
A shortlist of 10 student designs will be fabricated into finished jewelry by DMCC-nominated manufacturers and pearl sponsors.
The fledgling designers stand to win several awards including a 30-day internship with an international jewellery design house, a week's visit to the pearling operations of Paspaley Pearling Co in Western Australia, a seven-day course at Gemological Institute of America's (GIA's) Carlsbad campus and online pearl courses from GIA.
Gaiti Rabbani, Executive Director, Coloured Stones and Pearls, DMCC said: Pearl Essence is a very exciting initiative. It pays fitting tribute to the gem of Arabia, while at the same time bringing together the international pearl community in a unique manner. Through Pearl Essence, we aim to enhance awareness and appreciation of the beauty of this gem, drawing on the artistic finesse of luxury jewellery designers as well as the budding talent in the industry. Key milestones have been crafted during the programme to create unique opportunities for networking amongst young talent and established professionals, with a view to career enhancement."
"We are very encouraged by the response we've had from the pearl community; Paspaley Pearling Co has confirmed a support sponsorship role alongside official pearl sponsor for the student category. Damas, Dhamani, Mikura Pearls and Pinctada have confirmed participation as official manufacturers and the list gets longer as more partners sign up with Pearl Essence."
DMCC's two-year Pearl Essence programme will culminate in a gala event in Dubai, which will include an exhibition showcasing the pearl jewellery created by both the designer brands as well as the students and an awards ceremony to select and honour three winning students.
In addition, the final pearl jewellery collection will form part of a six-month traveling exhibition to major international jewellery shows.
The introduction of the Dubai International Pearl Jewellery programme is a vital new element of the DMCC's comprehensive pearl strategy, which seeks to revitalise the Middle East's leadership status in the pearl sector and re-establish Dubai as a centre for the global trade.
Pearl Essence complements DMCC's recently announced "Pearls of Arabia", a landmark project located on The World islands, featuring a high-quality offshore entertainment, education and retail centre.
Posted by Eman Hassan
