World Gold Council launches the 4th Pan-Arab Gold Jewellery Design Contest

This competition aims to highlight creative Arab designs of gold jewellery as well as the designers to the entire world.

This contest being on its fourth year now, was launched first at Jeddah - Saudi Arabia and Dubai - UAE. So far it has gained positive critical acclaim from different critics and artists in the Arab world for the past three years as it has helped in spreading Arab culture throughout the gold jewellery designers locally and internationally. For the fourth time the Council has teamed up in this Pan-Arab cultural and artistic event with the prestigious L'Azurde for Gold & Jewellery who was given the sponsorship where Future TV will have exclusivity in covering the event. On the print side, 'Zahrat Al Khaleej' will be the official magazine for this event with expected special reportage.

According to Mr. Moaz Barakat, World Gold Council's Middle East Director, 'The contest has already earned a reputation as the premier jewellery competition event of its type in the Arab world because 'Al Ibda'a Al-Hur' is a unique platform for Arab designers to create stunning jewellery designs in 21-karat gold. We have always believed that Arab designers have a lot to offer to the region and the rest of the world. We are fortunate to share this belief with our sponsors thus this competition has been described by its critics as the Oscar of gold jewellery design in the region'.

Mr. Barakat added, 'The Pan Arab Design contest is open for all amateur and professional designers. Moreover, this contest targets art lovers with creative imagination depicting their environment into gold jewellery that is part of the Arab culture and traditional values. This will give everyone an opportunity to compete at his or her own level.

Mr. Ayman Al-Haffar - Vice President and Marketing Director of L'Azurde Factory for Gold & Jewellery- stated that L'Azurde 'has participated for the fourth time in this pioneering project as the main sponsor because it is the biggest and premier innovative manufacturer of gold and jewellery in the Middle East as it has a pioneering role in design and creativity in the field of gold and jewellery. Our aim is to reach effective qualitative participants and to increase the awareness of the gold and jewellery designers in the Arab world, which will develop effectively their skills for a bright career in their own field'.

Mr. Moaz Barakat also commented in encouraging local talents and the high response level from the Arab world, 'we believe in our objective to educate people about gold jewellery design as it has relevance in their lives -it is the wealth of each individual's culture as well as its nation, and by its rich and charming designs, gold increases women's charm throughout their lives. Participants can be from all walks of life; all they need is a great imagination, a superb idea, and a vision that can be translated into gold that transcends women' s everyday life'.

This year, entries are accepted according to the following categories:

Bridal Wear Jewellery: Features jewellery designs for an engagement and wedding occasions.

Young and Cool: Modern day jewellery featuring jewellery designs for creative fashion youth wear.

Arabian Essence: Inspiring jewellery for the Arabian women, captivating jewellery designs inspired by traditionally worn jewellery with a modern twist.

Participants will be required to submit designs that are original, artistic, modern and show-stopping. Entries are open to everyone from late September till the end of December 2005. Afterwards, the World Gold Council will choose members to be the judging committee, which should consist of professional designers and artists who are well known in the Arab word, to select the preliminary winners. Then, L'Azurde's artisans and technicians will manufacture the 30 chosen designs into 21-karat gold pieces, which will reflect the fashion trends inspired by the winning contestants. And then later on the judging committee will decide and pick the final winners through a Grande Finale event to be held in June 2006.

Apart from the prestige the winners will get which will enable them to enter the world of gold and jewellery, 2 winners from each category (totaling 6 winners) will receive the prizes for each category:

1st Prize: 7 ounce medal of pure gold + trophy + Winner's certificate.

2nd Prize: 5 ounce medal of pure gold + trophy + 1st runner-up certificate.

Future Television, one of the leading Arab satellite channels, will be covering the TV advertising campaign and broadcasting the Grand Finale across the region. Zahrat Al Khaleej the Pan Arab magazine will cover the contest activities and the judging sessions as well as issuing special gold issues and interviews in its publication during and after the Grand Finale to commemorate this event.

The World Gold Council has developed a website for Al Ibda'a Al-Hor that will feature all the details of the contest.