From May 23 to June 06, in Mainz, four talented and visionary artists of African descent will reflect on the theme of the restitution of African cultural heritage.

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"African cultural heritage needs to be restituted!" This is the argument shared by many African cultural and political actors. However, while such arguments have been defended and heard since the times of independence, it's only in recent years that many actors in the art scenes from here and elsewhere  have become aware of the complexity of the topic restitution.

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What should be restituted? How should it be restituted? Can there be complete restitution? What might restitution, both material and non-material, look like 40-years-from-now?

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Through this exhibition, Cheria Essieke (from New Afro), the curator, aims to initiate a conversation about the future of the restitution of African cultural heritage by providing a platform for African creatives to express themselves through their artwork.

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We thank the Institut français Mainz, its partners and Kultursommer Rheinland-Pfalz for supporting this cultural project, which we hope will continue to grow.

We also thank Doctoral Researcher Clément Ndé Fongang  (Doctoral Researcher of the "Minor Universality" project at Saarland University) and Dr. Anna-Maria Brandstetter (Curator of the Ethnographic Study Collection (1992 - 2024) and director at the Institute for Ethnology and African Studies at the University of Mainz (Dec. 1983 - Mar. 2024)) for their participation to our discussion panel, that took place on the 24.05.2024, at the Institut français Mainz.

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We wish to grow this exhibition and continue nourishing the conversation about the future of the restitution of African cultural heritage around the world. Therefore, we are open to bringing this exhibition outside of Mainz. Feel free to contact us if you are interested in collaborating with us.

 

But first, meet the artists: Chelsea Odufu (Filmmaker, Photographer, Visual artist), Ibaaku (Music producer and Dj), Chidi Nwaubani (Multidisciplinary Artist), Nuits balnéaires (Photographer, Poet, Visual artist).