DRAGA & AUREL X COLLECTIONAL: BETWEEN MEMORY AND EXPERIMENTATION AT DOWNTOWN DESIGN DUBAI

Images courtesy of Draga & Aurel

Presenting Transparency Matters and Heritage

At Downtown Design Dubai 2025, Italian duo Draga & Aurel made their Middle Eastern debut with Collectional, unveiling a site-specific installation that distills their creative ethos — a dialogue between experimentation and memory, craftsmanship and art.

Founded in 2007 by Draga Obradovic and Aurel K. Basedow, the multidisciplinary studio is known for transforming materials into emotional narratives. Their Dubai showcase introduced new evolutions of two signature series: Transparency Matters — exploring the alchemy of resin and concrete through light — and Heritage, a reinterpretation of mid-century furniture through contemporary craftsmanship.

Among the standout works were Soffio, a luminous collection of lamps fusing Murano glass artistry with modern design; Rescue Me, bold furniture born from artistic upcycling; and sculptural centerpieces like Cava, Lava, and Stendhal, where resin and concrete meet in poetic equilibrium.

Presented by Magran Living

Completing the installation, an abstract painting by Aurel K. Basedow mirrored the same layered tension between control and spontaneity that defines the duo’s work.

As Draga & Aurel put it, “It is in the dialogue between future and memory that our creative path continues to take shape.” Their debut in Dubai affirms that vision — where design becomes both reflection and reinvention, rooted in heritage yet constantly reaching forward.