Art Director & Creative Designer

Working across design, art, and research to explore how geometry, folding, materials, and cultural narratives can transform into wearable, spatial, and visual experiences.

  • Heliostudio
  • Dubai Culture
  • Nersi
  • Studio Thirteen Collective Canvas
  • Al Shindagha Museum
  • Dior
  • Arian Hakimi Design
  • Diarbid Arthouse
  • C2ICC
  • ABC Coffee Roasters

Upcoming Exhibition, Osaka

Zeinab Zarei will present her wearable art as part of the upcoming OSAKA Group Exhibition at Arrival Gallery in Osaka, Japan, from 16–19 October 2026. The exhibition brings together contemporary artists and creative practices, offering a platform for Zarei to showcase her work at the intersection of art, fashion, material exploration, and the body within an international gallery setting.

The piece brings together Iranian miniature painting, Shahnameh imagery, traditional tilework and Japanese folding traditions, translating them into a folded textile structure that sits between garment, sculpture and architecture. Its deep blue recalls both Persian lapis lazuli and Japanese ai-iro indigo, treating geometry as a living carrier of cultural memory.

About Zeinab Zarei

Dubai-based Art director and creative designer and material researcher with an Industrial Design background. Her practice uses geometry, folding, and material behavior to transform inherited visual languages into contemporary spatial and wearable forms. Working across paper, textiles, leather, and flexible materials, she develops wearable sculptures and spatial structures through morphological research, where geometry, material, and making define form. Her work has featured in exhibitions, research projects, and collaborations. International recognition includes the International Design Awards (IDA), and she holds a UAE Golden Visa for Creatives.

Ways We Can Work Together

From early ideas to final creative direction, I work across disciplines to shape thoughtful concepts, visual identities, objects, and experiences.

1st Service- Creative Direction

Creative Direction

Concept development, visual direction, research, moodboards, styling, and creative coordination across multidisciplinary projects.

2nd Service Branding & Visual Identity

Brand & Visual Identity

Building distinctive visual languages through identity systems, art direction, patterns, packaging, and visual communication.

3rd Service Wearable & Object Design

Wearable & Object Design

Concept-led design across jewelry, garments, accessories, and objects, from material exploration & folding systems to prototyping & development.

4th service Workshops & Experiences

Workshops & Experiences

Designing and facilitating participatory workshops and experiences around origami, folding, geometry, design thinking, and material experimentation.

Selected Projects

A selection of work across design, art, research, and creative direction.

Perspectives on Working Together

A few words from people I’ve collaborated with across creative, design, and multidisciplinary projects.

Zeinab has a strong ability to understand an idea, bring clarity to it, and translate it into a thoughtful visual direction. She approaches projects with curiosity, attention to detail, and a clear creative perspective.

Yeganeh Vahdanifar

What stands out about working with Zeinab is the way she connects research, design, and storytelling. She looks beyond the immediate brief and brings together different references and disciplines to create something considered and distinctive.

Shamim Ghanbari

Zeinab brings both creative thinking and structure to a project. She communicates clearly across teams, keeps the bigger picture in focus, and makes the creative process feel collaborative and well considered.

A delighted patron

Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you might want to know before we start working together.

What does Zeinab do?

Zeinab is a multidisciplinary designer based in Dubai with a background in Industrial Design. She works across creative direction, brand and visual identity, and fashion, wearable and object design, and she also runs workshops. At the centre of her practice is material research: she uses geometry, folding and the way materials behave to turn inherited visual languages into contemporary forms.

What kinds of projects do you take on?

Concept-led projects where research and making shape the result. That covers creative direction and moodboards, identity systems and packaging, and garments, accessories, jewelry, objects and spatial structures. If your project needs a distinctive visual language rather than a ready-made one, it's probably a good fit.

Which materials do you work with?

Mostly paper, textiles, leather and other flexible materials. Every project starts with exploring the material, because geometry and the way a material folds and moves are what define the final form.

What does working together look like?

Every project starts with a conversation to understand the idea behind it. From there, Zeinab moves through research, concept development and visual direction, then on to prototyping and development where needed. Clients often describe the process as collaborative, clear and well structured.

Do you work with clients outside Dubai?

Yes. Zeinab is based in Dubai and works with clients across the UAE and internationally, both remotely and in person where needed.

What workshops do you offer?

Hands-on workshops built around origami, folding, geometry and material experimentation. Current formats include Folded Patterns (modular origami), Kusudama and the Iconic Origami Crane, and the Kusudama & Kōdō Experience, a multi-sensory session inspired by Japanese practices of form, scent and presence.

Do I need any experience to join a workshop?

No. The workshops are made for curious minds of every level. You'll be guided step by step, and the focus is on exploring, sharing and making rather than on getting a perfect result.

Can you design a private or corporate workshop?

Yes. Workshops can be adapted for teams, brands, events and cultural spaces, built around your audience and goals. Get in touch to talk through the format, group size and location.

How much does a project or workshop cost?

Every project is shaped around its scope, materials and timeline, so pricing is quoted per project. Share a few details about what you have in mind and Zeinab will come back with a tailored proposal.

How do I get in touch or book?

Email info@zeiinabzarei.com, call or message on WhatsApp at +971 55 654 7579, or use the contact form. 

Let’s create something meaningful together！

I’m always interested in thoughtful collaborations, new contexts, and projects that leave room for experimentation.　If you’d like to work together, exchange ideas, or simply start a conversation, I’d love to hear from you.

Location

Arjan, Al Barsha South

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Follow the journey

@ZeiinabZareii