Egyptomania: Fashion’s Conflicted Obsession

Dana Pritmani,

AHMP ‘24

Selections from an interview with AHMP alum and Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA) Assistant Curator Darnell-Jamal Lisby. This interview has been edited; to read the original, please visit the Art History Insider blog.

Darnell-Jamal Lisby, Assistant Curator of Fashion at the Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA), recently curated the exhibition Egyptomania: Fashion’s Conflicted Obsession, on display through January 28, 2024. He joined the CMA in 2021 to develop projects rooted in fashion studies that range across the museum’s various curatorial departments. Before coming to the CMA, he gained experience working at other institutions including the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum; the Museum at FIT; and the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where as a MuSe intern he helped research the 2018 landmark exhibition Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination. Darnell-Jamal is a proud AHMP alum (2016), who has published extensively on academic and mainstream platforms, including the Fashion and Race Database, Cultured magazine, and Teen Vogue. His academic arc at FIT began with an Associate’s degree in Fashion Merchandising, followed by a Bachelor of Science in the Art History and Museum Professions (AHMP) program and finally a Master of Arts in Fashion and Textiles Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice.

DP: Many congratulations on the Egyptomania exhibition! Thank you for taking the time to do the interview. I would like to know more about the background of the exhibition. What inspired you to organize an exhibition with this theme?

D-JL: Like most people, ancient Egyptian culture intrigues me as well. After seeing a handful of recent collections by different ateliers, inspired by ancient Egyptian art, I thought it would be pretty timely to execute the project. Additionally, when I started curating the show, it was the 100-year anniversary of the discovery of Tut’s tomb.

DP: How do you create a narrative or theme for an exhibition, and what strategies do you use to engage and educate your audience?

D-JL: Like any curator, you try to find glaring stories that con- nect the various objects I was thinking about compiling for my checklist. One of [these] was about cultural appropriation and if it applies to the use of ancient Egyptian culture as inspiration. Finding topics, like cultural appropriation, that connect with contemporary events are accessible ways to engage the audience. Furthermore, I used the broader topic of ancient Egyptian art and culture as inspiration for fashion to pique the audience’s interest, and then guided the audience to the denser topics like cultural appropriation and identity.

DP: Could you walk us through the process of curating the exhibition, from selecting the artwork to designing the installation?

D-JL: Well, it can get complicated, making it difficult to convey in a few short words. I had to lay out the history of Egyptomania and early Egyptological research that spurred the Egyptomania movement; thus, I had to pull examples across the CMA collection–from decorative arts to drawings–to help develop that foundation. As part of the CMA strategic plan, which helps guide the mandates of each museum employee, I also had to think about an intervention in our CMA Egyptian gallery. Interventions are ways that you can bring outside art into permanent collection galleries, emphasizing new ways to analyze various works of art and collections. I wanted to have one of the fashions that I chose displayed in the Egyptian gallery [and decided on] a Givenchy ensemble from the Fall 2016 collection that the Givenchy archive graciously allowed me to use. Additionally, I wanted to highlight Egyptian fashion design voices, so I incorporated two gowns by designer Yasmine Yeya and a purse by Sabry Marouf.

Once I developed the checklist, I had to develop the didactics, illuminating what I found in my research that I was developing. Once the didactics went through rigorous edits, it was time to work with the exhibition design team to create the physical show. I worked with them to create the blueprints and what inspirations I wanted to evoke. Lastly, in conjunction with the conservation team, headed by Sarah Scaturro, who was the former chief conservator of the Costume Institute, we figured out what type of dress forms we wanted to use. We also partnered with renowned costume dresser Tae Smith to help dress the forms. After that, the rest is history…

DP: Who inspired you to become an art curator, and how did you get started?

D-JL: After studying Andrew Bolton’s career way back in high school, it was his journey that encouraged me to become an art and fashion curator. I started just like you, in the Art History and Museum Professions program at FIT, taking in every bit of education and internship experience I could. After finishing the program, I matriculated into the Fashion and Textiles Studies MA program at FIT, and again, I absorbed as much as I could through my education and internships.

DP: What are some of the most memorable exhibitions you’ve curated or participated in, and what made them stand out for you?

D-JL: When I helped curate the Willi Smith: Street Couture exhibition with Alexandra Cunningham Cameron and Julie Pastor at Cooper Hewitt, I had the best time exploring the stories of all the people Smith knew during his life and how much they loved him. It was those stories that helped develop the exhibition. When I curated Egyptomania: Fashion’s Conflicted Obsession, I found all my research discoveries very exciting too, like understanding that the ancient Egyptians were unified by religion, not racial identity— as race is a recent construct in our human history. I also loved dressing the mannequins and physically mounting the exhibition, seeing all the work we did at the CMA come to life.

DP: How do you see the role of fashion curators evolving in the future, and what do you think are some key trends and challenges facing the field?

D-JL: Fashion curators will continue to push boundaries, searching for new topics that lean into contemporary culture, discovering new contributions by unsung figures and cultures, because fashion is such an accessible medium that touches on so many audiences’ lived experiences. I think the biggest challenge right now for fashion historians is not being afraid to tackle dense topics. As curators, our jobs are to make a complicated topic layman. Moreover, looking to diverse perspectives and celebrating a broader degree of contributions is very important and will help solidify fashion as a critical part of academia.

DP: Thank you so very much for taking the time to answer the questions. Many congratulations on Egyptomania: Fashion’s Conflicted Obsession!

Egyptomania: Fashion’s Conflicted Obsession will be on display at the Cleveland Museum of Art until January 24, 2024. The exhibition website has more information and extras on related events and more. ▪

DP: What are some of the challenges you face as a curator ?

D-JL: I think the biggest challenge is just getting institutions to understand the value of fashion in the art historical realm because once that’s understood, life becomes easier [in terms of] budgets, stakeholders’ interest, and ethical considerations. As mentioned, budgets can be tough, but at some point, you must go with the flow and know that God will provide a path moving forward… Of course, everyone’s path to peace is different.