At the ongoing Eidiah Tourist Festival at the Qatar National Convention Centre – it is on until July 30 – a few stalls lay stacked up with the finest Turkish wares. One stall though strikes as fascinatingly unusual rightaway. Due to some strange confluence, Turkish designs appear to have spilt over into quintessential Arabic kitchenware and vice versa — and the results are worth a closer look.
The Istikan Design stall shines, quite literally with all its glistening, glowing collection, in the Eidiah Festival that combines the Qatari heritage events represented in the Heritage Village and the associated exhibition showcasing consumer goods and the bazaar featuring unique gifts, the region’s cuisine, and play area for kids, among other draws.
Recep Yuksel, Owner and Designer, Istikan Design, tells Community, “Around eight years ago, we began holding exhibitions in Dubai. In our early exhibitions, I remember we put out only Turkish coffee cups, completely handmade copper items, beautiful to look at and feel. I realised that the Arabs loved these pieces a lot. As I began bringing more of these to the Gulf, I took the Arabic coffee cups to Turkey and embarked on a cultural fusion through design. Soon, we began devising kitchenware, showpieces and artefacts that were a mix of Turkish and Arabian design.”
What we now see in Yuksel’s Istikan Design stall at Eidiah Festival is the continuing narrative of that experimentation. From Arabic coffee cups refashioned in royal copper designs and Turkish coffee cups embedded with Mother of Pearl bits, to tableware and kitchenware channelling the choicest of Arabian and Turkish motifs, the shelves full of resplendent artefacts are a treat to browse through.
“We hold six to seven exhibitions across the Gulf every year — in Qatar, UAE, Oman, and Bahrain. I am the first person to create and offer such products in the Gulf. I was 22 when I brought this concept of copper craftsmanship to Gulf countries; Turkish copper plates, tea cups and coffee cups. I can even get a car made out of copper,” Yuksel says and smiles.
Laying out raw copper before them, Yuksel and his team routinely wonder what they could make out of it. “Our creativity sees us through various collections. We get these products made at our large factory in Istanbul and then present it across the Gulf,” Yuksel explains, “For Ramadan, we presented a different collection. To celebrate culture, we have another series. Every three to four months, I change the collection. Meanwhile, I notice that some people are trying to copy our ideas. It doesn’t matter because I’m sure only we can create these products with such detailing and finesse. Once we showcase our latest collections at exhibitions, we bring them to our store — Istikan Design store is at The Centre near Radisson Blu Hotel.”
Yuksel has ensured that Istikan Design creations grace the interiors of top hotels and palaces in the Gulf, apart from creating spanking new lines for weddings, hospitality events and such. “We have a lot of VIP customers from all over the world, and fortunately, we are their first priority,” Yuksel says.
Interestingly, Yuksel borrowed the name Istikan from Istikana, an Arabic word used to describe “a unique-looking glass to drink tea”. The word originated during the British colonisation of much of the Middle East, and the British, back then, referred to this unique-looking glass as ‘East Tea Can’, which with time evolved to ‘Is-ti-kan-a’. “I learnt this at one of my first exhibitions in Dubai when a gentleman told me of this little backstory,” Yuksel recalls.
Having tasted success in constant change, Yuksel wants to keep up with the game. “I will keep changing my designs. I won’t stop. I love this journey,” he says, “Even if some day I don’t make money out of this business, I will continue making new designs.”