Zeinab Khalifa is an Egyptian born installation artist, jewelry designer, businesswoman and accomplished artisan dedicated to keeping her endangered craft/ trade alive in a country that has historically produced highly skilled silversmiths.

Khalifa started her professional career as an apprentice working with Master Silversmiths in Khan El Khalili, the heart of historical Cairo. For four years she trained as a jewelry maker in a male-dominated industry and went on to start her own workshop in Heliopolis, a suburb outside Cairo. In 1990 started exhibiting her work in various galleries and cultural venues throughout the city including the American University in Cairo. Today, collectors from Europe, America, Asia and the Middle East regularly visit her gallery in Zamalek to purchase the single edition pieces on display. Zeinab Khalifa’s contribution to the cultural life of the city is extensive. Widely regarded as a pioneering designer and silversmith, she was recently invited to organize/ curate/ organize/ head the Cairo Biennale for aspiring Egyptian jewelry makers experimenting with different techniques and materials. More recently, she designed/or/ reproduced Pharisaic or Ancient Egyptian pieces for a contemporary film called Al-Asleyeen.

Zeinab Khalifa’s signature handmade pieces are designed for the bold woman who’s not afraid to cultivate a distinct style. Pieces are made of platinum, gold, silver and semi-precious stones. Drawing upon a rich tradition of jewelry making in Egypt, she incorporates Pharaonic, Coptic, Bedouin, Nubian and rural and motifs into her work with an innovative twist. Her exquisitely sculpted pieces are works of art in their own right, combining an artist’s unique or ( original) vision with the mastery of a traditional silversmith. It’s jewelry as a fine art that comes to life with the wearer’s every gesture.

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Zeinab Khalifa

“I do things differently in my workshop and pay the silversmiths a fixed salary. They also have health insurance. That is a big deal because the trade can be really tough on their health. I once wrote a research paper on this subject.
If you want to keep the trade alive, then, you have to invest in the workers and make sure their lifestyle is sustainable. It is also important to boost their morale because they work long hours. Our work is grueling. It is in my interest to keep them happy because it takes me along time to train them. Now don’t get me wrong I have nothing against the big factories that work with molds and depend on mass production. Jewelry making is a complex industry with a large global market. I am all for diversification. But my lifework is to enrich the tradition of handmade Jewelry in Egypt and to continually innovate and introduce new designs. 

Zeinab Khalifa’s lifework hasn’t been completed yet. She dreams of making the return journey to the heart of historical Cairo, establishing a school where the city’s disadvantaged children can learn the trade from master silversmiths. For her investing in human resources is essential. What better way to keep the trade alive from one generation to the next? If you are interested in protecting endangered craft and contributing to the dignity of labor, please consider making a purchase or donation.

Your Donation to Zeinab Khalifa Art Preservation Foundation. (ZKAPF!) will go towards education and preservation of this historical craft . Thank you!