S2 Ep3- Is Africa ready for the return of her stolen art?

Afropolitan Central

Earlier this year, French President Emmanuel Macron declared that “African heritage can’t just be in European private collections and museums” and commissioned for a report that would inform the temporary or permanent repatriation of looted African art currently held in French museums. On this episode of Afropolitan Central, we give our 2 cents on this topic starting from the absurd stance of giving African art back on “loaned” terms, whether the continent is equipped with the infrastructure to maintain these artefacts when returned or if museums are too Western a construct when it comes to African art appreciation among others! As always, chime in on our social media channels and let us know your thoughts on this topic- are we as a continent ready to receive these artefacts back? Resources mentioned: Omolayo’s blog post on the Congolese art exhibition: http://findingnkem.com/beaute-congo/ Initial announcement from Macron: https://news.artnet.com/art-world/macron-repatriate-african-heritage-1238219 Report findings: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/nov/21/france-urged-to-return-looted-african-art-treasures-macron