After the successful exhibition A Bridge Between Tradition and Vision – Contemporary Art and Craft Rooted in the Artistic Heritage of Egypt at the Colombian Embassy in Cairo, we were invited by H.E. Ambassador Mohamed El Molla and his wife to organize a similar event at the Egyptian Embassy in Vienna in September 2022.

The warm reception and strong interest from the Viennese community for our exhibition From the Nile to the Danube encouraged us to continue the journey: first with a small pop-up shop in Barnabitengasse in 2023, followed by the opening of our permanent space, Sobek & Schnurl, on Lerchenfelder Straße in April 2024.

Alongside the furniture, lighting, and kilims designed and produced by us, the artists featured in this exhibition – Heba Helmi, Walid Taher, Nicha Sursock, and Suzanne El Masry – continue to be part of Sobek & Schnurl today, with their artworks still displayed in our shop.

In many ways, this exhibition became the beginning – die Geburtsstunde – of Sobek & Schnurl.