In a deeply personal and poignant gesture, Rami Al Ali unveils his Fall/Winter 2025–26 couture collection, Guardians of Light – The Living Craft of Damascus, as he takes his place for the first time on the official calendar of the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode. With this milestone, Al Ali makes history as the first Syrian designer and the first UAE-based designer to be included in the prestigious calendar of Paris Haute Couture Week.
A poetic homage to heritage, memory, and the enduring spirit of craft, this season’s collection journeys into the heart of the designer’s native Syria—drawing from the fading grandeur of Old Damascus to illuminate the forgotten beauty hidden behind carved doors, painted ceilings, and intimate courtyards.
Guardians of Light is more than a collection—it is a couture elegy. A preservation of vanishing worlds made visible again through the enduring language of couture. Every stitch is a vow, every silhouette a remembrance. Through this body of work, Al Ali becomes both designer and custodian—reviving traditions not as relics, but as living, breathing testaments to Syria’s artistic soul.
The collection is rooted in the rich visual tapestry of Damascene architecture and ornamentation. Inspirations are drawn from the intricate woodwork of Al-Azm Palace, the rhythmic geometry of Khan As’ad Pasha, the tiled stillness of Jami’ al-Darwishiyya, and the refined grace of homes like Bayt Nizam and Bayt Farhi. These historic spaces—once alive with calligraphers, woodworkers, metal artisans, and weavers—echo once more, reinterpreted through modern couture.
Within the atelier, these memories transform into sculptural silhouettes and fluid forms. Brocades gleam with hand embroidery. Sequin motifs shimmer like Iznik tiles. Beading echoes the symmetry of mother-of-pearl inlay. Gowns become talismans; veils, whispered poetry. The garments glisten with storytelling—where craftsmanship is elevated beyond technique into cultural memory.
In collaboration with the Syrian Crafts Council, the collection draws on meticulously authenticated artworks and ancestral motifs—revived and transformed to fit a contemporary couture vocabulary. This partnership ensures every piece carries a traceable thread to Syria’s heritage, reimagined with reverence and modernity. The Council, a leading platform for the preservation of Syrian craftsmanship, brings depth, authenticity, and curatorial insight—elevating each creation into an act of cultural stewardship.
The colour palette flows like Damascus at dusk: plum and faded rose, alabaster, lapis, antique gold and silver, each hue bathed in light and shadow—evoking the duality of memory and metamorphosis. Sculptural and fluid forms coexist, balancing opulence with restraint.
This is not nostalgia. This is guardianship. A tribute to the artisans who came before, and a celebration of their indelible mark on beauty and tradition. Each piece in Guardians of Light is a vessel of meaning—crafted with devotion, shaped by memory, and rooted in legacy.
With this collection, Rami Al Ali not only unveils a powerful new creative chapter, but also celebrates a landmark moment in his career: his official debut on the Paris Haute Couture Week calendar, honoring both his artistic evolution and unwavering commitment to heritage-driven design.
