This exhibition displays the Raaya El-Nimr ethnic jewelry and costume collection alongside the folk-inspired paintings of her husband, the artist and designer Abdel-Ghani Abul-Enein.
Abul Enein and his wife spent their lives collecting folk art and trying to document the ethnic culture of Egyptian villages and oases, which was part of their work as the first costume designers for the National Group for Folk Arts.
El-Nemr traveled across Egypt to gather this unique collection of jewelry, costumes, ornaments, wood, metal works, and fabrics. Her rich and diverse collection is not confined to Egyptian culture only, but also includes items that she selected during her travels to Yemen and the Far East.
In addition, the family of the late couple has kindly donated their personal library to the BA, which comprises nearly four thousand books.
“Jewelry and Heritage” is a distinct and unique collection, which has recently been added to the exhibition, and which was gifted by Dr. Yusriya Abdel Aziz Hosni, a researcher in the field of heritage jewelry and stones.
She has wandered throughout Egypt, from its countryside to Upper Egypt, and from its deserts and oases to its valley and the Sinai Peninsula. She has compiled and studied the characteristics of the heritage art of jewelry in those regions throughout the ages. She has also moved between the countries of North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, in order to add other rich elements to her collection that express the features of those countries and their heritage, as well as beliefs and characteristics that have been carried forward by different generations. Therefore, she has offered, through this journey, a documentation of pieces of jewelry that were created by ancient craftsmen with spontaneous designs, using elements from the surrounding environment.