Malani Karani is the director of studies for interior design (undergraduate and postgraduate) at Heriot-Watt University Dubai.
She’s joining a panel of judges for the 14th annual Commercial Interior Design Awards, joining returning judge, David Lessard, a partner and design director at H+A; founder of Design Haus Liberty, Dara Huang; architect and academic, Annamaria Lambri and well-respected design academic Cristiano Luchetti.
Malani is responsible for overseeing programmes in the UAE, as well as liaising with university’s UK team to ensure parity across campuses. She is deeply involved in curriculum development, undertakes teaching and is actively engaged in various student activities.
Malini obtained her bachelor’s in interior design at the American University Dubai and studied further at the Academy of Art, University in San Francisco to obtain her master’s in architecture.
She has practiced as an architect and interior designer in Dubai for seven years and has been involved in academia for 15 years across the MENA region.
Projects in Dubai include Etihad Mall, Times Square Mall, retail branches of Barclays Bank and luxury villas in Emirates Hills. At present, she is completing her PhD in Architecture from the UK’s Cardiff University in the field of Indian Architectural Theory. She has successfully published research papers on this subject and constantly aspires to spread the essence of traditional architectural theories whilst continuing to embrace contemporary design.
In her free time, Karani enjoys sketching, painting, solving sudoku, playing games online and jigsaw puzzles. She is very passionate about her Lego collection and enjoys making them with her nieces.
She says: “It’s an absolute honour to be a part of the judging panel, especially in 2020, a year that has tremendously transformed the future of the interior design industry. The Commercial Interior Design Awards are a prestigious event for the design community, and I can’t wait to review the works of our industry peers and pioneers. As we forge ahead with the new challenges, I’m confident we will be looking at some of the most thought-provoking and groundbreaking design ideas that will inspire and shape the future of our industry.”
The unmissable industry evening was set be held on September 9, 2020, but was rescheduled to November 25 due to the global coronavirus pandemic.
For awards sponsorship enquiries, contact Rebecca Lockwood on +971 4 444 3268 or [email protected]
To book tables, speak to Anthony Chandran on +971 4 444 3685 or [email protected]
