Kelly Dabbah is one of those artists that matches her art; she looks and feels similarly. Maximalist, colorful, and exuberant—one cannot help but being drawn in. I first met artist Kelly Dabbah in conjunction with her installation, Cara Said Bacon, at SCOPE Art Fair 2021 in Miami. This is also where she met Gabriella Kazhiloti, who manages alice + olivia’s artist collaborations. Riffing off the model Cara Delevingne’s bacon tattoo, the installation featured a chair upholstered in Dabbah’s printed textile and mirrors appliqued with her collages—a critique on the beauty industry and an attempt to bring joy to the self-image. Some three years later, Kazhhiloti asked her to send something that could be used to highlight International Women’s Month, and Dabbah’s print made the cut. Literally, her collage was printed on fabric to create two alice + olivia designs—a mesh top and a silk blouse—that have become best sellers of the New York fashion house. She has certainly cracked the code on collaborations.

As we dive into our conversation, I think of Dabbah’s style beyond its aesthetics, that it aims to bring people together and begin to reshape my initial questions about the technical elements of the work—much of which has been covered. To truly understand her work, one must become curious about Dabbah’s life—her people and surroundings—and how they have come to shape her artistry.

“Ever since I was a child, I was fascinated by the female form and the fire women carry. The duality between the sensual and the assertive, the masculine and the feminine,” she explains. Understandably, growing up in a female-dominated household, she saw the diversity, strength, and beauty of women. Today she remains close with her four sisters, most who also work in creative spheres. One is a jewelry designer, another a dancer, the youngest, worked in events “and has a brilliant eye for atmosphere.” Her mother who she describes has impeccable style and that has taught her a level of precision and care that she hopes shows up in everything she creates, is her greatest inspiration: “I’m not exaggerating, she could be a famous stylist.” Family role models are not always necessary to succeed, but for Dabbah, it is clear that this creative female environment has shaped and enriched her mindset.

Dabbah has recently returned to the city she grew up in the French-speaking part of Switzerland, but with parents of North African and Middle Eastern descent, many cities and cultures have informed her work. The ornament and patterning that ground these South West Asia and North African aesthetics are clearly visible in her collaging. “I was constantly surrounded by vibrant textures, intricate tiles, and layered visual storytelling,” she explains and it is only when she takes a step back that she can see how deeply her heritage influences her work. “Morocco, with its breathtaking tiles, the chaos and beauty of the bazaars, the bold colors, the rhythm and repetition everywhere you look, is a kind of visual richness that stays with you.” It is a part of her cultural DNA, not always deliberate, but ever-present.

“There’s also definitely a twist of psychedelia, kitsch, and melancholy passing through it all. My work lives in that space; between heritage and imagination, nostalgia and chaos,” she continues.

Chaos and intoxicating energies drew her to New York City, where she lived for a decade. A New York transplant myself, I am more curious about how people leave, than why they came. Although she knew that she needed a new rhythm it took her two years to actually leave. Signing a new lease pushed her across the edge; facing the reality of staying another year made her realize how stuck she was. “There’s a saying: a new place brings new luck,” she chirps. She left New York and ended up meeting her now-husband upon her return to Switzerland. Continuing: “sometimes we need to take a step back, to move forward into something new.”

Dabbah’s tagline Pass With Care is a reminder to move through life with intention, kindness, and openness and deeply roots her praxis. In 2019, it was the theme of her first art installation in Miami Design District. An immersive store take-over at Gelareh Mizrahi where she transformed the space by printing her collage works on skateboards, pillows, books, and mugs. When she threw a party artists and new and old friends gathered in the space to hang out, connect, and feel good. People even spilled out on the street. “It felt like a true community moment, like bringing the creative heartbeat of Miami into one space. That’s what I wanted; something real, open, and welcoming.”

Perhaps it is a mindset culled from her studies in fashion design at Parsons, inspiration from her sister’s work in event management, or her boundless spirit, an eye that layers, rather than divides—or a combination of them all. Lending her artistic touch to ever more expansive projects, including complete visual identities and event design seems effortless now. When American Express and Marriott Bonvoy’s creative directors approached her to create a high impact visual on a short deadline at the W Miami, her answer was a resounding: “yes.” The project included a live performance, a video animation made from over 2,500 individual collages forming a single moving frame. From the oversized photo booth to the menus, custom gift items, and even the outdoor drinks stand, every element was crafted with her ethos: “pass the joint but do it with love.” It was the most complicated project she has staged to date, but also one of the most exciting, and she is looking forward to more.

The celebration honored the celebrity chef Kwame Onwuachi and his new restaurant, Tatiana, at Lincoln Center in New York City during Miami Art Basel. Although in this case she was certainly rubbing shoulders with the set, overall Dabbah’s work is welcoming and broadly appealing while it maintains edge—the magic sauce combination that many creative directors, merchandisers, or brand managers are trained to find.

“Collaborations have been such a rewarding part of my journey, and I want to keep exploring more. I have a dream list of brands I’d love to work with — across fashion, interiors, and even hospitality. I can already picture my work in hotel spaces, on furniture, on walls, bringing art into design in a way that feels immersive,” she explains. Haven’t most of these dreams already come true? I ask, she nods, laughing. It is clear she is always on the lookout for the next big thing—a New York mentality that she with bravado, has brought back to Switzerland.

Most of all, she would like to see her work in a rap video—”something loud and bold. I’m open to anything that lets my art live in new spaces and reach new audiences. The sky’s the limit,” she says with a big smile.

Doja Cat, are you seeing this?