The debate around the restitution of cultural objects from museums in the Global North to their countries of origin in the Global South is becoming more pressing, both in Kenya and in Germany. What are the challenges faced in the movement of cultural objects and how can these complex discussions overcome the power structures in place?
In its 3rd
Object Movement Dialogue, the International Inventories Programme welcomes the public to deliberate on these matters. This time, the discussion is hosted by the
Rautenstrauch-Joest-Museum (RJM) in Cologne, Germany. Panelists are Njoki Ngumi (The Nest Collective, Nairobi), Bénédicte Savoy (art historian, Berlin), Nanette Snoep (director RJM, Cologne), moderated by Sam Hopkins (artist, Cologne/Nairobi).
The
International Inventories Programme is a collaborative project between the Goethe-Institut Kenya, SHIFT (Germany/France), The Nest Collective (Kenya) and the National Museums of Kenya. Artists and researchers from Kenya, Germany, and France are conducting research on the topic of restitution while building a database of Kenyan cultural objects abroad. In 2020 and 2021, the associated exhibition project Invisible Inventories will be on display in Nairobi, Cologne, and Frankfurt, funded by the
German Federal Cultural Foundation.
The project partners from all three countries are visiting the collections of the RJM in Cologne as well as the
Weltkulturenmuseum in Frankfurt for a week-long workshop at the beginning of September.
More information: https://www.inventoriesprogramme.org/
Admission is free.
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