DUBAI: Gap Middle East has unveiled a campaign spotlighting six Saudi talents working across art, film, skateboarding, music and fashion.
The lineup features multidisciplinary artist Nouf Al-Himiary, skateboarder and Sandlifers co-founder Rakan Ghaith, filmmaker Razan Al-Soghayer, Jeddah-based producer and singer duo Sweam & O.DEE, and model Zahra Hussain.
The project comprises portraits and films capturing each talent in their everyday environments. It follows the brand’s Fall 2026 global “Denim on Your Own” campaign.
For Al-Soghayer, the campaign was personal. “When I was a kid at school, wearing a Gap jacket was basically the guaranteed ‘cool kid’ piece,” she told Arab News. “So being part of the campaign now definitely means a lot to the younger version of me.”
The filmmaker said her work was rooted in nostalgia. “I’m a bit of a hoarder when it comes to memories … a lot of my creative world comes from that feeling of nostalgia and from finding something honest in ordinary, everyday life,” she said.
For the shoot, she brought film cans and her first camera, a Barbie VHS camera she received at age 7.
Ghaith said the campaign gave a platform to Saudi Arabia’s skate community. “Skateboarding in Saudi has always been more than just a sport; it’s a culture and a form of self-expression,” he said. “Partnering with Gap allows us to show the world the energy of our local community.”
He said he plans to mentor new skaters and build the scene from the ground up. “I want skateboarding to spread across Saudi until it becomes as mainstream and natural as football,” he said.
Hussain reflected on how the Kingdom’s creative industry had changed since she started modeling. “The creative scene in Saudi was very small when I started.”
She added: “It is becoming a community and a genuine internationally appreciated industry rather than what was once more under the radar. I also see a lot more opportunities within the country arising,” she said.
She urged young Saudis not to “always look to be accepted in spaces that are deemed to be bigger and better than what Saudi currently has to offer.”
“Build with your authenticity of who you are and where you are from and let that shine through.”
