Laila Grace Zayed is a Palestinian Christian industrial and graphic designer based in Chicago. Her work brings together discursive commentary and Palestinian futurism through functional objects, including furniture, alternative seating, and domestic objects. Her practice is grounded in preserving and reinterpreting West Asian design philosophies and aesthetics.
With roots in Ramallah Tehta, Birzeit, Jerusalem, and Al-Husun, Jordan, her Palestinian ancestry is central to her work, translating the experiences of her community between Palestine, Chicago, and beyond.
Design activism is at the forefront of her practice. Since 2018, Laila has been actively involved in the Palestinian liberation movement, using her background in graphic design to create flyers, banners, and posters, and her photography practice to document people’s movements.
Her work intersects with architecture and interior design through the development of layouts, creating interior objects, and graphic supplementary materials
Laila received her Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design from the University of Illinois at Chicago and is currently pursuing a Master of Design in Designed Objects (MDDO) at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
Teta Jalila
The photograph depicts my great-great grandmother, Jalila, from around 1920, a Falahi Palestinian woman from Ramallah Tehta. I have chosen to feature her image as an icon/logo of my work and brand as a designer as a tribute to my family and heritage which deeply inspires my work.
Laila is the name of my paternal grandmother and Grace is the name of my maternal grandmother. I am proud to honor the woman of my family which have given me my name and identity.
I feel deeply connected to Teta Jalila, who lived in Palestine prior to Israel occupation. I remain hopeful that my generation will witness a liberated Palestine, and if not, we are committed to raising the next generation who will.
Palestine & Design
During the course of my undergraduate education in industrial design, the predominant focus on Western or European design was evident. Seeking a broader perspective, I expressed to a professor my interest in understanding industrial design through a multicultural lens. The response was disheartening: "Well, that’s because white people invented design." This statement was not only ignorant, but also verified my realization of the need for a more inclusive and diverse approach to design.
Contrary to the narrow views expressed by this professor, I came to understand that many aspects of the design principles we aim to implement in the U.S. and the West, such as community, environmentalism, and empathy, are already flourishing overseas, particularly in so-called "third world" countries like Palestine—my ancestral home. There, amidst the challenges posed by Israeli military occupation and colonialism, conventional design principles fall short. People living under military occupation, apartheid, and siege face unique challenges that render their lives far from normal, which conventional design practices often overlook. Consequently, design must confront occupation and play a pivotal role in promoting social justice in these spaces, in order to design under occupation and uplift the voices of the oppressed.
My current work and projects revolve around the concept of designing under occupation, utilizing Palestinian design aesthetics to tell our story and uplift our voices. As a Palestinian, I am deeply committed to countering ethnic cleansing and the appropriation of our culture by incorporating Palestinian and Arab design into Western spaces. This not only centers and represents us, but also serves as a passionate response to the shortcomings of current manufactured and soulless Western design standards. Palestinian design is vibrant and detailed. It values hand craftsmanship and tradition. It is imbued with meaning, identities, and stories, reflecting a unified relationship with the earth, community, and empathy.