Thoughts on restitution and CAA.
[Excerpts of an interview with Simon Njami.]
Q: How might the recent focus on restitution of African material heritage change the way that contemporary African artists relate to the past in their work?
A:
It’s not going to change anything – it’s the wrong debate. We are told that this is our heritage – but all the masks, sculptures, all those works that are exhibited in Western museums have nothing to do with what was left in Africa.
It’s as if you’re dealing with a distant relative you don’t even know any more – they have been transformed by the Western market into something that is entirely different.
I’m not sure that if some of them weren’t now worth millions people would be all that interested.
Q: What about those artists who incorporate references to these objects in their work?
A:
I would say that it’s a trap and that they should focus on their job. Africa’s been dealing with other things for centuries – why all of a sudden does it need these objects?
I want people to stop telling me that they are part of our memory, because we have been living without those memories and so they cannot tell me now that we cannot survive without them.
We survived because we had to invent, instead of being trapped in some wheel of thought about what was taken from us.
Q: Who are the artists, in your view, who best capture this spirit of invention?
A:
I never give names, but there are many – you just have to look at the shows I’m doing.
What I’d say is that there is a group of artists now who are working to construct the future by supporting young people, providing them with resources to fight the fight. It’s about building the ecosystem – and that’s why I don’t want to name individuals.
Q: How important is the growing market in the Gulf for contemporary African art?
A:
Well, we can’t survive without it – but the UAE can learn from the mechanics of what is happening in Africa now as well.
The future is certainly in Africa – we have the youngest population in the world. If the UAE starts to look away from the West to what is happening in Africa, then it will be one step ahead of the game.
*****The full interview is available here.
I like the part ( in the full interview)where the artist wanted to go to New York but instead he sent him to Dakar Biennial & he returned fascinated! This is a huge problem.
African s always want to travel overseas…collectively it will continue to leave our continent underdeveloped & underpatronized.
Happy Monday 💚
A totally different perspective from Njami.