Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council

Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council engages with women artisans across the UAE, Middle East, North Africa, South and Southeast Asia regions to empower them economically and socially through vocational training and upskilling programmes, ensuring the preservation of indigenous craft heritage. A hub of global crafts collaborations, Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council ensures the modernization of traditional crafts, and creates new market opportunities for local craftswomen by partnering them with international designers and artists. The council also ensures the documentation of tangible and intangible craft heritage and creates publications that serve as a reference to a culture that relies heavily on storytelling. Its latest efforts have led to Sharjah’s recognition as a city of Crafts and Folk Art for the craft of Talli in 2019 by UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network.