LONDON.- Today, Young V&A announces new details of its second exhibition Making Egypt, created for children and families, which takes visitors on a fascinating journey through the ancient past to modern day, exploring how stories and images from ancient Egypt continue to influence art, design and popular culture.
Told across three sections exploring themes of Storytelling, Communicating and Making, with gods guiding each step of the way, Making Egypt will journey through the Nile, inviting young visitors to uncover ancient Egypt’s myths and gods and the landscape and culture that inspired them.
Making Egypt will feature ancient artefacts – many on display for the first time including decorative funerary masks and linen shrouds dating back over 2,000 years - contemporary fashion, jewellery, comics, film, games, sculpture, ceramics and more from across V&A’s collection, as well as national loans. Young visitors can try their hand at deciphering the mysteries of hieroglyphs, discover meaning and messages communicated through colour, as well as explore hands-on the making of objects that populated ancient Egypt.
Benjamin Hinson, Curator of Making Egypt, says: “Ancient Egypt fascinates us like no other society. As a fundamentally visual culture, Egypt has influenced art, design and performance for centuries and remains just as compelling today. From exploring Egypt’s stories, making processes and techniques to thinking about the heritage and cultural presentation of objects from an ancient society, Making Egypt will offer our young visitors fresh insights into the creative practices of one of the longest-lasting civilizations in the world, showcasing how an ancient culture can inspire the future makers of today.”
Dr Helen Charman, Director of Learning, National Programmes and Young V&A, says: “We are delighted to be opening Making Egypt, our second exhibition at Young V&A, designed and curated specifically for children and young people. Through its exploration into the lasting impact of creativity from an ancient culture, we hope to continue Young V&A’s commitment to excite, provoke curiosity and fire the imagination of our young visitors.”
The exhibition is divided into three sections – Storytelling, Communicating and Making – each exploring Egyptian creativity through a different lens. Journeying from sunrise to sunset along the Nile, Making Egypt invites visitors to encounter the landscapes, stories and people that inspired ancient Egypt’s creative language, with playful illustrations of gods Amun, Thoth and Ptah by artist Jean Wei guiding the way.
Throughout, contemporary responses from jewellery and fashion designers, graphic novelists, ceramic artists and beyond will spotlight ways in which ancient Egypt’s beliefs, stories and characters continue to inspire makers today. Their works will be shown alongside sketches and design images, photos of workshops, tools and quotes from the artists themselves, unpacking their creative processes.
Free educational tickets for schools will be available for Monday - Thursday mornings during term time, from 3 March – 18 July 2025 and 8 September – 17 October 2025. On Thursday 28 November 2024, teachers are invited to join Young V&A for a free online talk with Making Egypt’s curators, exploring the content of the exhibition and what classes studying ancient Egypt can gain from a visit.
