Western museums are now returning looted art to Africa. But this doesn't mean colonialist thinking is history, says Annabelle Steffes-Halmer.
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This Benin bronze was recently returned to Nigeria from the University of AberdeenImage: Kalyan Veera/REUTERS
Thirty-four years — that's how long Germany's colonial rule in Africa lasted.
If you take France, which for example had colonies in Africa until the early 1960s, this period may seem comparatively short. But these 34 years were enough to traumatize people in the occupied territories, to commit the first genocide of the 20th century, namely the massacre of the Herero and Nama people in what is now Namibia, and together with other colonial powers, to rob an entire continent of its cultural heritage.
Experts estimate that between 80% and 90% of Africa's cultural heritage is stored in European museums or their repositories.
But there is more at stake here than "just" art and everyday objects. When Europeans plundered Africa's treasures to fill their new ethnological museums in a veritable competition, they devastated entire towns and villages and erased the collective memory of entire nations.
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Turning point after long-delayed debate
The fact that Europeans are now beginning to return objects from — as it is euphemistically called — "colonial contexts of injustice" is long overdue, especially since the discussion is not new. Prompted by the restitution demands of African intellectuals, Europe's politicians and museum experts were already discussing how to deal with this delicate "heritage" 40 years ago. But African representatives were not invited to these negotiations.
The basic tenor at the time was that the pieces were better off in Europe, protected from environmental effects and decay. It was believed that Africa was incapable of protecting those pieces. It was an openly racist discourse that led to no result.
In this respect, Benedicte Savoy, one of the leading art historians in the field of looted art, rightly speaks of a turning point. In an interview with DW last year, she even likened the change in the restitution debate to the fall of the Berlin Wall.
In November, France made a start by returning 26 works of art from the former Kingdom of Dahomey to present-day Benin in a ceremonial act of state. Germany will follow suit this year and begin returning the more than 1,000 Benin bronzes that are stored in various museums in the country. Among other things, they should be prominently displayed in the newly opened Humboldt Forum. Most of the valuable bronzes originate from a looting operation by British troops in 1897.
Colonial structures persist
The restitution of looted art is a start, but it must not and cannot stop there. For example, when are we going to start "giving back" Africa's raw materials? Be it coltan, bauxite or diamonds, transnational corporations continue to profit from Africa's mineral resources. However, little of this wealth reaches local populations. This unequal balance of power is also a remnant of colonial rule.
Or consider the reservations regarding the production of COVID-19 vaccines. The fact that South Africa is now embarking on producing mRNA vaccines invalidates arguments often made earlier that there is a lack of expertise and suitable production facilities outside of Europe and North America. This, too, is a racist discourse. At its core, it resembles the view museum professionals had 40 years ago about the lack of protection and care for artifacts in Africa.
Germany's colonial rule in Africa lasted 34 years. More than a century later, we are only at the beginning of a long process with the restitution of looted art and cultural objects. Perhaps this will eventually lead to "cooperation on an equal footing," as is often called for by Western politicians regarding Africa.
This article was originally in German
What's in store for culture in 2022
Whether it's the Berlin Film Festival or Venice's Berlinale, the year 2022 promises great events in art, music and literature. The Benin Bronzes are also scheduled to be returned.
Image: Daniel Bockwoldt/dpa/picture alliance
January
In 2022, Kaunas in Lithuania, Esch in Luxembourg and Novi Sad in Serbia share the title of European Capitals of Culture and will launch their programs in January. As Germany starts returning the Benin Bronzes looted in colonial times this year, the new culture commissioner, Claudia Roth, will conduct a round table discussion on the topic. The Grammy Awards are scheduled for January 31.
Image: Daniel Bockwoldt/dpa/picture alliance
February
Gerhard Richter celebrates his 90th birthday on February 10. Dresden's Albertinum museum will show his works from private collections, and Berlin's Neue Nationalgalerie will display his artist's books for the first time. The Berlinale is to kick off on February 10, and is planned as a live film festival despite the ongoing pandemic.
Image: Rolf Zoellner/epd/imago images
March
Lit.Cologne, Germany's largest literature festival, which takes place in Cologne, is hoping for live, on-site events starting March 15. It kicks off with a reading by newly crowned Nobel Prize winner for literature Abdulrazak Gurnah (photo). Shortly thereafter, the Leipzig Book Fair is to open its doors with Austria as the guest country. The month ends with the Oscars in Los Angeles on March 27.
Image: Frank Augstein/AP Photo/picture alliance
April
Power structures and coming to terms with the past — those are topics artist Maria Eichhorn addresses. In 2022, she will represent Germany at the Venice Biennale. The International March of the Living on April 27 recalls the victims of the Holocaust. People walk three kilometers from Auschwitz to Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration and extermination camps.
Image: Jens Ziehe/Deutscher Pavillon auf der Biennale in Venedig/picture alliance
May
To have God spare them from the plague,the people of Oberammergau in Bavaria vowed in 1633 to perform every 10 years the Passion Play about the death and resurrection of Christ. The 2020 event had to be postponed by two years due to the pandemic. The 42nd Passion Play is to take place from May 14 to October 2. The band Rammstein also had to postpone its European Stadium Tour, now to start May 20.
Image: Tobias Hase/dpa/picture alliance
June
The 70th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession to the throne is to be a jubilee party with a "Bollywood" feel, which includes four-day celebrations from June 2 to 5 at Windsor Castle. A highlight in the German city of Kassel: Held every five years, the 15th world art show Documenta is held from June 18 to September 25. It is curated by the Indonesian artists' collective ruangrupa.
Image: Steve Parsons/AFP
July
Pristina, capital of Kosovo, will be the site of the traveling biennial "Manifesta" in 2022, which takes place every two years in a different location in Europe. Manifesta aims to use art to help the people of Kosovo "reclaim public space and reshape the future of their city as an open-minded metropolis in the heart of the Balkans." It runs from July 22 to October 30.
Image: Visar Kryeziu/AP/picture alliance
August
After two pandemic-related cancellations, the three-day Wacken Open Air (WOA) is to take place again from August 4. However, it is already sold out. In Essen, the Folkwang Museum celebrates its 100th anniversary and is addressing the history of art denounced as "degenerate" by the Nazis: "Expressionists at the Folkwang. Discovered - Defamed - Celebrated."
Image: Axel Heimken/dpa/picture alliance
September
On September 2, the "Lord of the Rings" saga will get another media boost: Amazon Prime will show the fantasy trilogy exclusively as a series, which is expected to cost around $1 billion. Berlin's Gemäldegalerie will honor a special master of the arts: "Donatello. Inventor of the Renaissance." Brazil will be celebrating 200 years of independence.
Image: kpa/picture-alliance
October
"Love Me Do," The Beatles' debut single, celebrates its 60th anniversary on October 5. The Frankfurt Book Fair takes place in this month, with 2022's guest of honor being Spain. Also strongly awaited is the announcement of the winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature and winner of the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade.
Image: Sebastian Gollnow/dpa/picture alliance
November
Some people are said to have had time during the various lockdowns to delve into that the mammoth work of literary history: "In Search of Lost Time." Its author, Marcel Proust, was born 100 years ago on November 18.
Another anniversary that is bound to spark discussion: Michael Jackson (photo) released the album "Thriller" 40 years ago on December 1. With more than 50 million copies sold, it is the best-selling pop album of all time. Thirty years ago, the first SMS text message was sent. And Austrian Nobel Prize for Literature winner Peter Handke was born 80 years ago, on December 6.
