by Xinhua writers Wang Bowen, Liu Xue
TEL AVIV, Israel, March 20 (Xinhua) -- At a new bar-restaurant in Israel's ancient port city of Jaffa in Tel Aviv, Jews and Arabs mingled together Monday night to enjoy a rare fashion show featuring Israeli-Arab designers.
Nadia Ibrahim Azizi, the lead designer of the show, is probably the most popular Israeli-Arab designer in the predominantly Jewish country.
Aziz said she staged the show, which also attracted a number of ambassadors and foreign diplomats, in a bid to promote Israeli-Arab designers in the international arena.
"We live in a very diverse country, we exist, we got the talent, we love what we do, and we are good at it! Now it is time to get the well-deserved exposure," said Azizi.
Among other designers exhibiting their works at the event included shoe designer Sahar Abu Seif, jewelry designer Hanan Masalha, and bag designer Omar Rafat. Like Azizi, they are all Israeli Arab designers.
After studying corsets, evening and wedding dresses at the Concept Community College, Azizi developed her immense interest in fashion designing.
She went on to study fashion designing at the Shankar College of Engineering and Design, Pattern Making and Fashion Design.
Azizi soon became a leading player on the Israeli fashion scene: participating in the annual Fashion Week in Israel in 2011 and 2012, launching own fashion productions in Italy, Austria and Belgium, and often appearing on Israeli magazines.
Rafat, who created his own bags brand "Eyemnur," said that Israeli Arab designers are far too few at the moment, as the number of them could be "counted with hands."
Living in a Jewish country where there have been tensions between Jews and Arabs, Rafat defines himself as an Arab Palestinian Israeli, and more precisely, a global citizen.
Rafat, 40, has travelled extensively around the world. To him, identity is inherited, and he is happy with his Arab identity.
Everything, including politics, keeps evolving, but Rafat believes it is important to be "citizen of the world."
He said the fashion show is a good start for Israeli-Arab designers to shine in this country and he would love to see and attend more events of this kind.
Gradually, Israeli-Arab designers are starting to join the mainstream fashion industry in Israel.
At the Tel Aviv Fashion Week 2018, with diversity as the underpinning theme, Naim K. Qasim, also an Arab fashion designer, was selected to display a piece at the "Shine" Gala event on Saturday.
"Fashion can bring change between peoples and cultures," said Qasim.
