Fantasy Takes Form

Saudi Arabian designer MOHAMMED ASHI talks to EDWAIN STEENKAMP about his lifelong love of fashion, and creating some of the most spectacular gowns seen on the red carpet

When Cardi B stepped onto the red carpet at the 2018 Grammy Awards wearing a snowy Mohammed Ashi creation, it was one of those rare moments when I fell in love with fashion all over again. Seldom do you find a designer who will push the limits of form, while remaining faithful to wearability and beauty; it’s what makes his creations so breathtaking. Speaking to the man behind the dress, it was perhaps no surprise that he is every bit as interesting as his creations. Curious and inspired, Mohammed Ashi is a true craftsman.

‘Ever since I can remember, I wanted to be a fashion designer,’ Mohammed tells me. In Saudi Arabia, where he grew up, there was very little opportunity for cultural exchange, and so television would become one of the strongest influences in his childhood, offering him a gateway into the outside world. 

‘I remember I was about 11 when we got satellite television at home for the first time. I was able to watch all the popular things of the time, like music videos on MTV and soap operas like Dynasty. I used to watch that show just to see what Alexis Carrington would wear,’ he says. Mohammed admits that there were times he would even skip school to watch television.