Youssef Nabil, I Saved My Belly Dancer #XXIV (2015). Courtesy of the artist.
Youssef Nabil's upcoming exhibition at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) has been featured in the Life & Arts section of the FT Weekend August print issue.
Born in Cairo in 1972, Youssef Nabil draws inspiration from 1950s Egyptian cinema, exploring nostalgia and cultural heritage in his work. His 2015 short film I Saved My Belly Dancer, starring Tahar Rahim and Salma Hayek, captures the drama and dreamlike quality of mid-century cinema. The LACMA exhibition presents the story through 11 hand-painted photographic stills, including images of Hayek mid-dance and intimate scenes with Rahim, evoking the film’s luminous, otherworldly atmosphere. As curator Linda Komaroff observes, the belly dancer “embodies Egypt for Youssef… She is what he/the cowboy takes with him to a new land.”
Youssef Nabil’s I Saved My Belly Dancer will be on view at LACMA’s Resnick Pavilion from August 24, 2025, to January 11, 2026.
