After listening to the 99% Invisible Podcast’s “Person in Lotus Position”, I decided to create emojis that would succinctly describe aspects of my life growing up in Abu Dhabi.
After listening to 99% Invisible Podcast’s “Person in Lotus Position”, I created emojis that reminded me of Abu Dhabi in ways that were both memorable and funny. I initially tried to design some emojis with applications on the iPhone App Store, but I realized that they were too restricting. Deciding to switch to a graphic design application, I chose Pixelmator on Mac to design the emojis. I also severely underestimated the time needed to create the designs, although I did learn a lot about graphic design in the process.
I created three emojis: One of a landmark that reminded me of home (Aldar HQ), one of an important part of Emirati culture (Bukhoor), and one for comedic purposes (Emirati sandal (na3al) being thrown out of a hand).
Emoji #1
I used the Aldar HQ building as a basis for an emoji representing Home, as it was the building I passed every day on the way to school. When I showed the emoji to my parents, they immediately recognized it, and said that they found the design to be very pleasing. Out of the three emojis, I feel like this one is the most similar stylistically to Apple’s current emojis, while the next two have more unconventional designs.
Emoji #2:
Bukhoor is the name given to small pieces of Oud that are burned to create a pleasant aroma in the house. My mom would always light bukhoor when I got home from school and walk with it around the house to spread the long lasting smell. She also used it whenever we had guests as a sign of hospitality.
If you’ve never seen bukhoor before, then it is pretty difficult to understand what the emoji is trying to signify. A few relatives I showed it to said that they recognized what it meant, but that they doubt it could be universally used.
Emoji #3:
With this one, I depicted an Emirati sandal, or “na3aal”, being thrown out of a hand. A common parenting technique in the Arab world, the action depicted in the emoji should resonate with people who grew up in the region.
After showing this emoji to a few friends in the library, they asked if I could send them the picture so that they could use it as an emoji as well, which was pretty cool. My parents also found it very amusing.
Many times before, I’ve felt like a text message could have been just that tiny bit better if only there was a perfect emoji to go with it. #3 is my favorite because the emoji itself allows for the expression of a situation that was much more difficult before.