Egypt’s Maison Yeya Exhibits In Cleveland Alongside Cartier and Chanel

Egypt’s bridal and haute couture label Maison Yeya is being displayed alongside Carter, Balmain and Chanel at the latest exhibition presented by the Cleveland Museum of Art in Ohio. Running until 28th January 2024, “Egyptomania: Fashion’s Conflicted Obsession” is a thought-provoking, intimately scaled exhibition exploring the influence of ancient Egyptian art in fashion.
The exhibition juxtaposes contemporary creations by major fashion and accessories houses, with ancient Egyptian art from the CMA’s distinguished collection. Through a selection of fine and decorative artworks from the CMA collection, it traces the history of Egyptomania, the allure and fascination with ancient Egyptian culture in Western art.

Visitors will learn about the social ramifications of fashion's interpretation of ancient Egyptian art from the reclamation of ancient Egyptian history by modern Egyptians to Black empowerment. The exhibition also highlights ways in which art and fashion continue to keep alive the legacy of the ancient Egyptians.
“Ancient Egyptian culture and style have been extremely influential on fashion designers worldwide,” Darnell-Jamal Lisby, assistant curator of fashion at the CMA, tells #CairoScene. “Fashion’s leading minds from Paul Poiret to Karl Lagerfeld and accessory enterprises like Cartier have made Egyptomania a staple design element. Reinterpreting ancient styles and motifs, such as hieroglyphs, religious symbols and historical ancient dress, designers often lean into contemporary audiences’ fantasies of ancient Egypt, playing a role in how the public traditionally comprehends and connects with the ancient culture.”

“Egyptomania: Fashion’s Conflicted Obsession” hopes to encourage a more nuanced understanding of how fashion and other extensions of our society, from film to advertisements, have shaped our evolving perceptions of ancient Egyptian culture. Highlights include two gowns from the French Egyptian designer Yasmine Yeya; fashions from the Parisian houses of Chanel, Balmain and Givenchy; a King Tutankhamun funerary mask–inspired handbag by Egyptian accessories company Sabry Marouf; early 20th-century Cartier jewelry; Hank Willis Thomas’s photograph Da’Nile; and a Statue of Amenemhat III.