^{Words by Allegra Salvadori | Image Courtesy of Alserkal.}

Following the announcement of Design Miami’s multi-year partnership with Alserkal, Marie Claire Maison Arabia speaks exclusively with Vilma Jurkute, Executive Director of Alserkal, to unpack the cultural thinking, regional context, and long-term vision shaping this landmark collaboration.

Culture, Vilma Jurkute insists, is never created in isolation. It emerges through long-term relationships between institutions, cities, and communities—a belief that sits at the very core of Alserkal’s partnership with Design Miami.

“Culture isn’t produced in isolation,” she explains. “Alserkal has grown together with the city of Dubai, which has grown to become a global hub for tourism, finance and, today, ideas and community.” The collaboration, she tells Marie Claire Maison Arabia, reflects this parallel evolution, shaped by the city’s growing cultural confidence rather than by a desire to follow global trends.

The timing of the partnership is deeply rooted in structural shifts already underway. Dubai’s designation as a UNESCO Creative City of Design, the UAE’s position as the region’s leading creative economy, and the increasing contribution of design to the city’s creative GDP all played a role in making the collaboration feel not only strategic, but inevitable. “Our multiyear strategic partnership with Design Miami was informed and inspired by a number of factors,” Jurkute notes, adding that “Design Miami in Dubai will be grounded in our shared ethics of care, merit, rigor and collectivism.”

As international institutions—from Art Basel to Salone del Mobile Milano—intensify their engagement with the Arabic region, Design Miami’s arrival in Dubai signals a shift from episodic presence to sustained cultural investment. For Jurkute, what distinguishes this partnership is the alignment between the two organisations’ histories and ambitions. “Design Miami is a partner whose evolution aligns closely with our own,” she explains. “Both our organisations have worked to shape the cultural identities of our respective cities.”

With Dubai joining Miami and Paris as a host city, the collaboration establishes a triangulated exchange that positions design practices from the region within a global framework—without diluting their specificity. “Dubai joins an exciting roster of cities, the likes of Paris and Miami, to present a flagship annual Design Miami fair,” Jurkute says, “giving rise to a triangulated knowledge exchange that will put the Middle East on par with the rest of the world, significantly growing our reach.” Crucially, she adds, “Design Miami in Dubai will enrich the global conversation around collectible design, extending the current platform for design voices from the region to an international stage.”

This emphasis on dialogue rather than display is consistent with Alserkal’s broader cultural mandate. Over the past fifteen years, the organisation has developed a plural ecosystem that spans disciplines and publics, from Alserkal Avenue—now welcoming more than two million visitors annually—to the research-driven Alserkal Arts Foundation and the globally active Alserkal Advisory. “Alserkal has built a cultural ecosystem and has been making culture in the city of Dubai for almost two decades,” Jurkute reflects. “The plurality of our organisation has allowed us to shape culture across a wide variety of disciplines.”

Design, she suggests, represents a natural extension of this approach. Collectible design, in particular, requires an ecosystem capable of supporting a wide range of actors while maintaining curatorial depth. “This partnership came about because of a shared interest in building a sustainable ecosystem for collectible design,” she explains, “and that benefits all stakeholders, from designers to gallerists, entrepreneurs, buyers and collectors.”

Grounding Design Miami in Dubai therefore means more than hosting a fair; it involves embedding the platform within regional narratives, relationships, and modes of working. “Ultimately, our collective goal is to connect local and global practitioners,” Jurkute tells Marie Claire Maison Arabia, “and ensure the programme reflects the region’s creative narrative while linking meaningfully to the international design world.” This process, she adds, will be shaped through collaboration, research, and thoughtful dialogue—rather than replication.

In a region often associated with speed and scale, Alserkal’s insistence on responsibility and slow curation remains central. “Responsibility is not arbitrary and it is particularly important when shaping a cultural discourse,” Jurkute says, underscoring the importance of dialogue-based, participatory practices. The same mindset, she notes, “will spearhead our approach within this collaboration, alongside the perspectives of the region’s design community.”

The long-term framework of the partnership—combining a flagship event with year-round programming—also reflects Alserkal’s belief in continuity over spectacle. “Our work is grounded in the ethics of care, shared authority, and collective learning,” Jurkute explains, emphasising that “supporting emerging voices alongside established will be just as important for us.”

Rather than positioning Alserkal as a fixed location, she describes it as a living, polyphonic platform shaped by dialogue and community. “We think expansively about our networks,” Jurkute concludes, “privileging relevance and connectivity over geographic limits or disciplinary boundaries.” As Design Miami prepares to launch in Dubai in early 2027, the partnership signals not simply a new destination on the global design calendar, but a deeper recalibration of where—and how—collectible design is shaped today.

First image: Jen Roberts, CEO, Design Miami, Vilma Jurkute, Executive Director, Alserkal. Photo Nino Consorte, Seeing Things Photography