Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic In 1928-29, the Swiss-German expressionist Paul Klee travelled across Egypt, traversing from Alexandria and Cairo down to Luxor and Aswan. Among the works his trip inspired is the Monument an der Grenze des Fruchtlandes (Monument at the Border of the Fertile Land), a dreamlike linear abstraction depicting the irrigated farmlands along the Nile – a landscape practically unchanged since Biblical times – as a multitude of watercolour striations. Goya Gallagher, founder of new Cairo-based lifestyle brand Anūt Cairo, referenced the Monument in the design of Nanusa, her five-cabin dahabiya (a style of traditional sailing boat that has been a fixture on the Nile for centuries), the retreat to which she escapes when not at home in Cairo or London. Shading the main deck is an enormous canopy, fashioned from sections of heavy linen that have been hand-dyed in Klee’s shore-to-sand shades, then stitched almost invisibly together. It undulates gently in the breeze, an echo of both the artwork and the living landscape that surrounds the boat, day in and out.It’s encounters like these, between artists and the beauty of Egypt, that have not only inspired the design of Gallagher’s boat but also Anūt Cairo’s new bed and table linens, glassware, pottery and accessories. “Egypt is so incredibly layered, both historically and in terms of the arc of its craftsmanship,” she says. “From the ancients through to Coptic textiles, the Mamluks, and the Ottomans.” Each has its own distinct aesthetic language, but all are part of the weft of Egyptian heritage. Anūt Cairo’s first collection, A Nile Journey, in which Gallagher collaborated with creative director Cruz María Wyndham, pays homage to ancient Egypt.“I’ve always tended to think in terms of different eras, so this seemed like the right place to start,” she says, looking up and over the boat’s pristine white railings to the grassy shores of the far riverbank, where a few miles away is the Ptolemaic Temple of Horus at Edfu. “Not so long ago, I went to the Tombs of the Artisans [at Deir el-Medina]. To me they’re the most beautiful because they’re just freer – the artisans weren’t obliged to uphold whatever instructions they would have had in the making of the tombs of kings and queens.”We really liked the idea of artists and artisans combining their talentsAboard the Nanusa, pharaonic motifs surface everywhere. A side table depicts a night sky with a blazing moon and five-pointed stars in tiny stone mosaic tiles. It’s executed in the unmistakable shades of the famous Thebes Valley tomb paintings: rich saffron yellow, oxblood red, and indigo so dark it’s almost black. In the enclosed sitting room off the main deck, the walls are covered in bespoke khayamiya tapestries depicting date palms, ritual amphorae and ankhs, interspersed with strips and panels of intricately woven Akhmim cotton, a textile tradition so old it was cited by the Greek historian and geographer Herodotus in the 5th century BC.The Nanusa itself has belonged to Gallagher for 20 years, prior to which its history is a bit of a mystery: “You almost never really know the provenance of these dahabiyas. Everyone who tries to sell you one will insist it once belonged to some prince. At one point, this one was apparently a restaurant in Cairo.” When she acquired it, it was in disrepair and she undertook the first total restoration with the late antiquarian Amr Khalil, one of Egypt’s most revered interior designers. “His style was quite Old Egyptian. The design was grander than it is now,” Gallagher says. “He came up with the brilliant idea to add the sitting room [off the main deck]. And then, because riverboats always need maintenance, it has kind of evolved year to year.“But this,” she says, gesturing at the very un-Old-Egypt mix of pastels and contemporary rattan, Akhmim cushions and whimsical khayamiyas, “is the biggest refit I’ve done.”It took place in 2024, around the same time that she and Cruz María Wyndham decided to launch Anūt Cairo. (Both had previously been involved with the Egyptian design studio Malaika, Gallagher as a co-founder.) The fruits of Anūt Cairo’s first collection are thanks to “a big mix of collaborators”, says Gallagher. “Some were artisans we already knew,” such as Amal Akhnoukh, the mosaic artist who created the charming side table. “But we’d never done a table before. Then we found a brilliant metalworker, and the two of them collaborated. That made us realise we really liked the idea of artists and artisans combining their talents.” Such multidirectional collaboration means “things are always going to have their uniqueness. Which I love. Even when you say, ‘Please do this specific thing, with these specific colours,’ it’s always ultimately a conversation. And there will be an unexpected element, some little surprise.” Other collaborators were more recent discoveries, such as Moushira Elamrawy, the dyeing expert who created the Klee-inspired canopy. “I found her on Instagram – she lives in Alexandria. I asked if she’d be interested in doing some fabrics for us, using all the old natural dyes – pomegranate, hibiscus, cumin and ground nutshells – as a sort of experiment. And she came and actually taught us how to dye. Then I sent her Klee’s painting and asked if she could help me create something like it.” It’s a beautiful example of why Egyptian artisanship has commanded such respect worldwide and for so long. “But I think it could – it needs to – go up a notch,” Gallagher says. “We should try to elevate craftsmanship to its highest expression. If I could be part of making that the case, then that to my mind would constitute a real success.”Meanwhile, her immediate plans involve engaging with artists aboard the Nanusa: “I’ve been thinking for some time, ‘I have this boat. I could be sharing it, using it to make some kind of impact.’” The concept is to host an artist, or a few, on board for several days and nights, with the hope that Egypt’s influence will find its way into their work, however organically or subtly. Gallagher is “completely open” to all, so long as they’re creators. “A novelist? A ceramic artist? We could do the five senses, with a filmmaker, a musician, a spice maker or chef…”Initially the residency will focus on Egyptian artists. Gallagher has earmarked a date for the poet and photographer Mohamed Abdel Wahed to kick it off, after which she will collaborate with Cairo’s esteemed Gypsum Gallery. She is still considering what sort of work or contribution the artists in question will deliver and when: “But I’m also trusting that a trip down the Nile in this boat will do a lot of the inspirational work for me.” Anūt Cairo, 14 Shagaret Al Dor, Zamalek, Cairo, anutcairo.com. Products also available at abask.com and goodeeworld.com
