Not many designers can rival Zuhair Murad’s flair for beading and embroidery, perhaps this is why he has dressed some of the most iconic women in the world, including Jennifer Lopez who proudly admitted that he was her favourite designer.
Whether he’s dominating the red carpet or wowing the front row at Couture Fashion Week, Murad has never failed to dazzle with his innovative approach to combining colours and decorations, shapes and fabrics, artfully draping women in pure escapism and glamour.
As a tribute to his legacy, the Lebanese couturier has become the subject of the latest Assouline book that has been beautifully put together by fashion journalists Alexander Fury – who has previously worked on Assouline books on Chanel and Dior – and Babeth Djian.
Aptly named Zuhair Murad, the coffee table edition that should be on every fashionista’s wish list and will be available from this month. Each page takes a closer look at Murad’s signature approach and highlights some of his most iconic creations.
“Each piece feels like a personal extension of myself and a display of dedication, talent and skill that fills my atelier,” he says in the book.
Murad’s inspiration is always a woman with an hourglass silhouette, a celebration of the female form divine, reinventing her each season. Drawing inspiration from past and present, his imagination conjures the idea of a strong, powerful and distinctly contemporary woman interlaced with the sublimation of the eternal feminine.
This year has been particularly challenging for Beirut based designers. Not only has Murad had to make new plans following the cancellation of couture week in Paris, but he also mourned the loss of his atelier after the devastating blast in the Lebanese capital.
“Although our Beirut headquarters are completely damaged, I am extremely thankful for the safety and well-being of the Zuhair Murad family,” Murad wrote on Instagram.
While the couturier’s atelier was decimated along with 80 per cent of the archives for upcoming collections, the designer has made giving back to the community the priority by designing a T-shirt aptly quoting the words ‘Rise From the Ashes’ on it.
All of the profits from this limited edition T-shirt went to support the relief efforts and have been worn by the likes of Jennifer Lopez and supermodel Alessandra Ambrosio.
Zuhair Murad by Assouline is available on Assouline.com
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