Design enthusiasts assemble. Every year in December, AD launches its annual AD100 list spotlighting 100 of the most influential architects and designers of the year. On 15 December, Architectural Digest Middle East hosted the region's top creative’s at Studio 12 inside ME by Meliá Dubai, which is located in the Opus Tower designed by the late Pritzker-winning British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid. The event was a chance to celebrate the work that has defined an enviable new era of the Middle East and North Africa.

The evening welcomed live performances from Dubai-based soul band ABRI and a musical set by Kuwaiti DJ Cascou. During the event, guests could create engraved metallic works in the ‘Creators of Craft’ room, a collaboration between Vogue Arabia, IQOS and Seletti, while a curated selection of sculptures provided by Artemest lined the entrance wall as the guests arrived.

 

Canapés by ME by Meliá Dubai and Soirée adorned brushed metal plates, and beverages like the ‘Sparkling Pearl’ paid homage to Dubai’s pearl-diving history, producing a thoroughly Instagrammable table landscape by Farid Mimouni. Guests flew in from all corners of the world, including Doha, Lebanon, New York, London and Egypt to celebrate the incredible contributions they’ve made to design. To commemorate their significance, AD100 2026 names were perforated into a winding sheet of steel and suspended from the ceiling; a nod to the industrial setting of the venue and a material that revolutionised architecture.

Floral arrangements by Events Library featured muted Amaranthus that cascaded over a curated wine bar by Soirée , while giant scrolls of aluminium sectioned the room providing intimate nooks for catch-ups and long-awaited embraces. The spectacular night was a triumph for the industry, organised by creatorandcurator, the creative production agency working across Dubai, Ibiza and London.

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