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Somar Kawkabi
عربي

Art director · Designer · Founder

Somar Kawkabi

Portrait of Somar Kawkabi

From the printed page to the product screen.

Istanbul--:--

Thirteen years of Arabic-first design. I lead campaign visuals across MENA for Oriflame, co-founded Mujaz, and build software products of my own.

  • Oriflame · Creative Consultant
  • Mujaz · Co-founder
  • Sylogz · Partner

Practice

What I do

  • 01

    Art direction

    الإدارة الفنية

    Campaigns and visual systems that hold together across markets, languages and formats.

  • 02

    Design

    التصميم

    Identities, editorial and bilingual typography. Arabic and Latin treated as equals.

  • 03

    Products

    المنتجات

    I design and build software, from the first sketch to the shipped interface.

  • 04

    Consulting

    الاستشارات

    Creative and digital strategy for brands, publishers and NGOs across MENA.

Ventures

Companies and products

Two partnerships and two products of my own.

  1. Co-founder01 / 04

    Mujaz

    AI-powered Arabic summaries and newsletters. The news, made short.

    mujaz.io
    Mujaz
  2. Partner02 / 04

    Sylogz

    Strategy and digital innovation consulting. I lead design and the Mujaz integration.

    sylogz.com
    sylogz.com
    Sylogz
  3. Founder03 / 04

    URUK Shelf

    A bilingual home for publishing houses going digital. Built for books, not generic e-commerce.

    urukshelf.com
    urukshelf.com
    URUK Shelf
  4. Founder04 / 04

    Briefrow

    The briefing platform for creative teams. Briefs, approvals and files in one place.

    briefrow.com
    briefrow.com

Building something?

I join early-stage teams as designer, partner or advisor.

Get in touch →

Work

Selected design work

  • Oriflame: Campaign visuals, MENA

    Oriflame

    Campaign visuals, MENA

    Art direction
    2021–

  • Dar Al Saqi: Book covers & editorial · Award-winning

    Dar Al Saqi

    Book covers & editorial · Award-winning

    Publishing
    2013–2021

  • Mujaz: Brand system & product

    Mujaz

    Brand system & product

    Brand, product

  • URUK Shelf: Brand & design system

    URUK Shelf

    Brand & design system

    Brand, publishing platform
    2025–2026

  • Briefrow: Briefing platform

    Briefrow

    Briefing platform

    Product design
    2026

About

I started in books.

Eight years as art director and designer at Dar Al Saqi taught me typography, patience, and how ideas travel in print.

Then campaigns, then products: the same craft, applied to new formats. I work between Arabic and English, with a wide network across MENA publishing, NGOs and the UN procurement space.

years of practice
13years of practice
years in publishing
8years in publishing
companies & products
4companies & products
scripts, one voice
2scripts, one voice
  1. 2024 — NowMujazCo-founder
  2. 20XX — NowSylogzPartner
  3. 2021 — NowOriflameRegional Art Director, now Creative Consultant
  4. 2013 — 2021Dar Al SaqiArt Director

Recognition

  • First Award, Best Book Design

    Beirut National Book Exhibition, 59th edition

  • First Award, Best Book Design

    Beirut National Book Exhibition, 62nd edition

Education & languages

  • BA Graphic Design

    Lebanese International University · 2014–2017

  • TS Graphic Design

    Bir Hassan Institute · 2012–2014

Arabic (native) · English (professional) · Turkish (elementary)

Selected projects

Major tournaments

2023–2025 · Layout Specialist

  • FIFA Women’s World Cup2023
  • AFC Asian Cup2024
  • Africa Cup of Nations2025
  • AFC Champions League Elite2025

Publishing

  • Saqi Books

    United Kingdom

  • Khayyam Books

    Sweden

NGOs & culture

  • Gherbal Initiative

    Lebanon

  • Stichting SPARK

    Netherlands

  • Flint Culture

    Qatar

Brands & products

  • NeoTooth

    France

  • Wonderbee

    UAE

Contact

Say marhaba.

For art direction, design and product work, or to compare notes.

[email protected]