In 2011 the Prince Claus Fund supported 113 cultural initiatives in 66 countries, gave emergency aid to cultural heritage in 36 conflict and disaster situations and presented awards to 11 outstanding cultural achievers.
Here we provide a selection of our activities in all programmes.
The Prince Claus Fund and the Amsterdam Fund for the Arts organized a spectacular fashion show of Moroccan fashion designer Zhor Raïs at De Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam on the 17th of February 2011. Zhor Raïs is known for transforming the traditional Moroccan caftan into contemporary haute couture. The show was preceded by a fashion battle between three young Moroccan-Dutch designers and was presented by Chazia Mourali.
Zhor Raïs is known for transforming the traditional Moroccan caftan into contemporary haute couture. The show was preceded by a fashion battle between three young Moroccan-Dutch designers and was presented by Chazia Mourali.
Zhor Raïs was trained at the École des Beaux-Arts in Casablanca where she launched her couture studio in 1984. She designs typically Moroccan garments such as the djellaba and the caftan. The Moroccan caftan, a long, traditional gown that is exclusively worn by women in Morocco dates from the Merinides dynasty (1244 – 1465) and has grown into an important symbol of Moroccan culture.
The fashion show by Zhor Raïs was preceeded by a fashion battle. In this battle three young Moroccan - Dutch designers challenged each other with creations from their own collections.
A professional jury consisting of Zhor Raïs, Majid Akkrouch, Steven Dahlberg, Sonny Groo and Willa Stoutenbeek judged the creations and elected WI-AM Designs as the winner with her collection The Black Golden Water. WI-AM won a masterclass by Zhor Raïs in Casablanca. All of the pieces were received with great enthusiasm by a large and varied crowd (approximately 450 people) . The fashion battle and the fashion show of Zhor Raïs were produced by MAFB (Music and Fashion Battle) in coordination with the International Art Programme.
The Fund also collaborated with Premsela, a Dutch platform for design and fashion, that introduced Zhor Raïs in the Dutch fashion scene. In addition to the fashion show, Zhor Raïs conducted two masters courses for students at the Rietveld Academy and the Meesteropleiding Coupeur in Amsterdam.
In fact I would like to show the female curves. Nowadays women ask for it, they want to wear shorter caftans and show their legsDesigner Zhor Raïs in an interview with the Volkskrant
Prince Claus Fund Herengracht 603, 1017 CE Amsterdam | tel: +31 (0)20 344 9160 fax: +31 (0)20 344 9166
