Creativity is thriving at the intersection of artisanship and technology. How can this new culture of making help write a fresh narrative for global heritage?

This talk was broadcasted on the Dubai Design Week website on 12 November, Thursday 4pm and on Dubai Design Week’s YouTube Channel



About David Raffoul and Nicolas Moussallem
David Raffoul and Nicolas Moussallem met at the Lebanese Academy of Fine Arts where they both studied interior design. Together they furthered their studies at the Scuola Poliltecnica Di Design in Milan before going their separate ways, with David joining the Fabrica research centre in Treviso and Nicolas becoming a freelance designer.


In 2011 the duo met again and set up their design studio in Beirut, quickly building their worldwide reputation thanks to their multidisciplinary approach and «retro-futuristic» style. Over the years their creations have been exhibited at the Nilufar Gallery and the Carpenters Workshop Gallery. They have worked in conjunction with major international brands as well as on high-end projects for independent clients.
Their mutual critical spirit is an integral part of their collaboration. While David creates detailed sketches Nicolas prefers to write down his ideas, but no project is ever completed without the contribution of both partner’s inimitable style. They pay almost obsessive attention to the smallest details and cheerfully combine Eastern and Western influences, ancient and contemporary.

About Jenny Binchy
Jennie Binchy graduated from The Bartlett School of Architecture, London in 2002 with commended design work and the highly coveted drawing prize. After working in Hong Kong and then London for several years at a renowned architect practice, she moved to Dubai in 2008 and worked as a senior architect in one of Dubai’s contemporary design practices, later being promoted to Associate Architect and in addition, running the Interior Design Department.

In 2020, Binchy and Binchy have been selected to feature their architectural work in the region’s first dedicated Architecture Festival, d3 Dubai Design District Architecture Festival in Partnership with RIBA Gulf Chapter.

About Roberto Palomba
Internationally renowned, Milan based architect and designer. In 1994 he founded with Ludovica Serafini - Palomba Serafini Associati; the studio develops interior/ exhibit/industrial design and architecture projects worldwide.

He is a strategic consultant and art director for several historical design companies, collaborating with leading international brands such as Boffi, has been a lecturer at the Polytechnic of Milan (Degree in Industrial Design) and has been awarded numerous international recognitions, such as Compasso D'Oro (Italy), Ahead Award (UK), Australian International Design Award (Australia) and many more.

About Sacha Walckhoff
With a mix of Slavic, French, Swiss and African roots, Sacha Walckhoff’s influences are as diverse as his origins. More recently, in addition to his role as Creative Director for Christian Lacroix Maison, he has branched into other projects where he has defined and developed his own unique vocabulary. Such an example would be his collections going from textiles, wallpapers and carpets to furniture and porcelain creations with companies such as Rosenthal, Taiping, Vista Alegre, Pulpo products or Savoir Beds.