The Markup #14

This Month in Design & Architecture

Alan George
March 31, 2026

🎙️🎙️ Welcome back aFormers!🎙️ 🎙️

As Dubai’s design landscape moves through 2026, this moment feels both reflective and forward-looking. In a time shaped by regional uncertainty and shifting global conditions, designers are being called to rethink not just what they create, but how and why they create it. The current climate is encouraging a more grounded approach to architecture: one that values resilience, resourcefulness, and deeper connections to place. It’s a reminder that design is not just about form, but about responding to context with clarity and purpose.

At the same time, the UAE continues to push forward with ambitious developments and evolving design directions, from smart living environments to culturally rooted spaces that prioritize meaning over excess. This balance between challenge and opportunity is shaping a new design mindset — one that embraces adaptability, celebrates local identity, and redefines modern luxury through thoughtful, enduring design.

Read along to stay in tune with the forces shaping design in the region today!

Spotlighting Benazir Noor Mohamed, shaping people-centered and inclusive cities through research, advocacy, and sustainable design.

Featuring Ujjwal Goel’s entrepreneurial approach at Teraciel Group, shaping end-to-end solutions across the built environment.

Highlighting Drue Newcomb, delivering large-scale, culturally attuned projects through expertise and strategic design leadership.

Showcasing Leali Ezzat, elevating interiors through refined aesthetics, bespoke craftsmanship, and design that puts people first.

GAFF Automation

GAFF Automation transforms spaces with expertly designed smart home systems that fuse advanced technology with seamless, user-centric living.

Ideal for luxury residences and high-end developments, their work emphasizes integrated automation, intuitive control, and refined performance. With GAFF, designers and clients can create environments that are both technologically advanced and elegantly controlled, bringing any project to life with sophistication and ease.

Click here to connect with the team!

// ZHA turns the page — embracing a future beyond its namesake.

// NEOM resets Trojena — $5bn dam project scrapped in major strategy shift.

// Wedyan on Dubai Canal moves into delivery with top consultants appointed.

// The Courtyard, Al Quoz — where Dubai’s creative scene comes to life.

// Mosques, Old And New, Patronised and Designed by Women.

Need an office playlist? Or do you need to plug-in and disconnect from the studio? We got you! We have put together hours of a an eclectic mix of down-tempo, ethereal & dance music tracks designed in keep you in a state-of-flo! Crafted for those deep design dives & studio vibes!

If this newsletter adds value to you, please share it with like-minded designers.

#StayInspired