Scandinavian Design with Islamic Values

It all started one morning, over breakfast, in October 2017. I had done a few paintings for our new home and was not able to find any wall decorations that had Islamic value, which would fit a Scandinavian home. I could not be the only young Muslim who had this problem. In recent years, the second and third generations of immigrant to Europe are adopting a modern lifestyle, with different needs and habits than the previous generation. As it has happened throughout history, that people migrate and immigrate, and cultures and traditions fuse together in many ways, including homes and how we live our lives.

Fusion between two cultures

The language of design might be Scandinavian, but it is created with a love for the Arabic language and calligraphy, and Middle Eastern architecture and culture. This translates into the company as we are usually balancing the development of the company in between cultures too.

Company Goals

  • Design and Photography. We are aiming to build a solid connection between the two cultures of the east and west with our designs. The Design language is Scandinavian fused the Middle Eastern heritage. We travel the world to create beautiful memories for all of us to display in our home.
  • Islamic Values. Islamic is the heart and core of Muslims lives, and we are creating designs with this in mind. Ethical production and fair pay for workers is something which is just as important, as our products. As Muslims, we have an ethical commitment to uphold.

Ethical production and less waste

I grew up in Denmark and converted to Islam when I was twenty-four. One of the things I found interesting about Islam was the value-set when it came to protecting the planet and often scientific and spiritual approach to this life. With the company, we are always aiming to uphold the values which is taught to us in the religion, and with that comes a responsibility as a Muslim company. Our products are made ethically with workers being paid fairly, and our production is either in Europe or locally. We work with On-Demand-Manufacturing which lowers our waste drastically and lowers our CO2 emission as a well.

Expanding to fill the gaps in the Western Muslim Lifestyle

With the growth of On-Demand-Manufacturing we have already expanded our designs to more than just wall art. While most companies fail to cater to the western Muslims, there are still many opportunities for us to introduce new products that are serving our community. We have recently launched phone cases, and textiles and are currently working on more products. With our approach that Muslims in the West have two cultural backgrounds, we are constantly working on designs that fuse the two together as one. It is important for us to remember our religion in our daily lives, and we are here to create design that suits the lifestyle, and still uphold and reminds us of our faith as well.

 

Simone Doenvang

 

The simple, Scandinavian design language, combined with the exquisite and ornamental expressions of the middle east, surely creates an interesting fusion of cultures. Our company was created one morning in 2017 over breakfast. Just as many other Muslims in the West, we have a foot in each culture and wanted to create products that combined the two.