What happens when culture is splattered on a t-shirt?

August 19, 2009 at 11:18 am · Filed under Arabisms, Art

The newest trend in the Arab world, and a cool one at that, is t-shirt startups. Usually composed of young Arab creatives, looking for a canvas of self-expression.

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In Jordan, there’s Blouzaat. I have already told you much about Blouzaat: gorgeous graphics teamed with a little too-smart social commentary and random Arabic phrases. Wearing a Blouzaat shirt makes me feel like I’m wearing a work of art.

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In Jordan, there’s also Jo Bedu, whose designs are as simple as simple as can be, yet they ooze wit. My favorite of their designs is a simple blue box that looks very similar to the Orange logo, except it says “Zarga.” I also love the one below: 

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In Lebanon, there’s ASHEKMAN, who sort of meet between Blouzaat and Jo Bedu. Funky graphics, with a dash of wit.

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 In Egypt, there’s Zafir, whose designs are neither too gorgeously designed nor fantastically witty, but they yell “CULTUREEE!”
Some of the designs include illustrations of the dolls Egyptians get to their daughters in Eid, and very Egyptian phrases.

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In Kuwait, there’s BAS, who shamelessly borrow cultural items and stick them on t-shirts, making wonderful items out of them.

 

Finally, in Saudi Arabia, there’s Nada’s E-Shop, which amused me so much that I wrote this post. Nada’s E-Shop is so different that the rest of the countries t-shirt art shops, because rather than dwell on older pop-culture or beautiful art, she uses elements of contemporary Saudi life to include  in her tees.


I’m sure there are many more in the Arab world, and it’s so nice to see all this creativity. Are there any more shops in your countries that I’m not aware of?