The Africa Institute, Global Studies University is pleased to host its first lecture linked to the Restitution and Reparation: Africa and the Post-Colonial Condition Fellowship, supported by Open Society Foundations.
The lecture will feature Chika Okeke-Agulu, Robert Schirmer Professor of Art and Archaeology and African American Studies, and Director, Africa World Initiative, Princeton University, who will present a lecture titled “Restitution and the Postcolonial Museum” on Wednesday, 5 February, (4:30 PM – 6:30 PM) in The Africa Institute – Auditorium (location map).
The session is free and open to the public. Register to attend.
In this lecture, Okeke-Agulu sees the recent developments in the decades-long impasse on the return of looted African art and cultural heritage held in Western museums and collections as a unique opportunity to rethink the meaning and work of museums in Africa. With the return and pending repatriation of the so-called Benin Bronzes to Nigeria (and other prized objects to Senegal and the Republic of Benin), Okeke-Agulu argues that it is time for a new museum paradigm—what he calls the postcolonial museum— that is unburdened by the histories and legacies of colonialist thought, and Western imperial museums. He sees the emerging Museum of West African Art, Benin City, as a possible model of the postcolonial museum in Africa.
An artist, critic, and art historian, Okeke-Agulu specializes in indigenous, modern, and contemporary African and African Diaspora art history and theory. Born in Umuahia, Nigeria, Okeke-Agulu earned an MFA in Painting from the University of Nigeria in 1994 and a Ph.D. in Art History from Emory University in 2004. He previously taught at The Pennsylvania State University (2004-2013) and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (1995-2000). He is currently a Robert Schirmer Professor of Art and Archaeology and African American Studies, Department of African American Studies & Department of Art and Archaeology and Director, Africa World Initiative, Princeton University, USA.
Okeke-Agulu has held prestigious visiting professorships at Williams College (2007), New York University (2020), and the University of Oxford (2023). He has been recognized as a Fellow at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute (2008) and received the Woodrow Wilson Career Enhancement Fellowship (2010). In 2022, he was elected a Fellow of The British Academy.
His publications include several influential books on African art, such El Anatsui. The Reinvention of Sculpture (Damiani, 2022), African Artists: From 1882 to Now (Phaidon, 2021), Yusuf Grillo: Painting. Lagos. Life (Skira, 2020), Obiora Udechukwu: Line, Image, Text (Skira, 2016), Postcolonial Modernism: Art and Decolonization in Twentieth-Century Nigeria (Duke UP, 2015), and Contemporary African Art Since 1980 (Damiani, 2010). He has also contributed to numerous academic journals and mainstream media outlets, and co-edits Nka: Journal of Contemporary African Art.
As a curator, Okeke-Agulu has co-organized significant exhibitions, including Samuel Fosso: Affirmative Acts at Princeton University Art Museum in 2022 and, with Okwui Enwezor, the traveling survey El Anatsui: Triumphant Scale at Haus der Kunst, Munich (2019). He serves on advisory boards for several prominent art institutions and has received multiple awards for his contributions to art history and criticism.
Elizabeth W. Giorgis is the Chair of the Department of Humanities and Professor of Art History, Theory, and Criticism at The Africa Institute, Global Studies University, Sharjah. Read more.
This lecture series is part of the Restitution and Reparation: Africa and the Post-Colonial Condition Fellowship, an annual program that brings together scholars and practitioners to engage with restitution and repatriation issues related to African art and artifacts. The fellowship supports research and dialogue on cultural heritage, historical accountability, and the return of looted artifacts to their rightful homes in Africa. Applications for the fellowship are currently open. Visit our fellowships program to learn more.
The Africa Institute, Global Studies University is pleased to host its first lecture linked to the Restitution and Reparation: Africa and the Post-Colonial Condition Fellowship, supported by Open Society Foundations.
The Africa Institute, Global Studies University is pleased to host its first lecture linked to the Restitution and Reparation: Africa and the Post-Colonial Condition Fellowship, supported by Open Society Foundations.
The lecture will feature Chika Okeke-Agulu, Robert Schirmer Professor of Art and Archaeology and African American Studies, and Director, Africa World Initiative, Princeton University, who will present a lecture titled “Restitution and the Postcolonial Museum” on Wednesday, 5 February, (4:30 PM – 6:30 PM) in The Africa Institute – Auditorium (location map).
The session is free and open to the public. Register to attend.
In this lecture, Okeke-Agulu sees the recent developments in the decades-long impasse on the return of looted African art and cultural heritage held in Western museums and collections as a unique opportunity to rethink the meaning and work of museums in Africa. With the return and pending repatriation of the so-called Benin Bronzes to Nigeria (and other prized objects to Senegal and the Republic of Benin), Okeke-Agulu argues that it is time for a new museum paradigm—what he calls the postcolonial museum— that is unburdened by the histories and legacies of colonialist thought, and Western imperial museums. He sees the emerging Museum of West African Art, Benin City, as a possible model of the postcolonial museum in Africa.
An artist, critic, and art historian, Okeke-Agulu specializes in indigenous, modern, and contemporary African and African Diaspora art history and theory. Born in Umuahia, Nigeria, Okeke-Agulu earned an MFA in Painting from the University of Nigeria in 1994 and a Ph.D. in Art History from Emory University in 2004. He previously taught at The Pennsylvania State University (2004-2013) and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (1995-2000). He is currently a Robert Schirmer Professor of Art and Archaeology and African American Studies, Department of African American Studies & Department of Art and Archaeology and Director, Africa World Initiative, Princeton University, USA.
Okeke-Agulu has held prestigious visiting professorships at Williams College (2007), New York University (2020), and the University of Oxford (2023). He has been recognized as a Fellow at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute (2008) and received the Woodrow Wilson Career Enhancement Fellowship (2010). In 2022, he was elected a Fellow of The British Academy.
His publications include several influential books on African art, such El Anatsui. The Reinvention of Sculpture (Damiani, 2022), African Artists: From 1882 to Now (Phaidon, 2021), Yusuf Grillo: Painting. Lagos. Life (Skira, 2020), Obiora Udechukwu: Line, Image, Text (Skira, 2016), Postcolonial Modernism: Art and Decolonization in Twentieth-Century Nigeria (Duke UP, 2015), and Contemporary African Art Since 1980 (Damiani, 2010). He has also contributed to numerous academic journals and mainstream media outlets, and co-edits Nka: Journal of Contemporary African Art.
As a curator, Okeke-Agulu has co-organized significant exhibitions, including Samuel Fosso: Affirmative Acts at Princeton University Art Museum in 2022 and, with Okwui Enwezor, the traveling survey El Anatsui: Triumphant Scale at Haus der Kunst, Munich (2019). He serves on advisory boards for several prominent art institutions and has received multiple awards for his contributions to art history and criticism.
Elizabeth W. Giorgis is the Chair of the Department of Humanities and Professor of Art History, Theory, and Criticism at The Africa Institute, Global Studies University, Sharjah. Read more.
This lecture series is part of the Restitution and Reparation: Africa and the Post-Colonial Condition Fellowship, an annual program that brings together scholars and practitioners to engage with restitution and repatriation issues related to African art and artifacts. The fellowship supports research and dialogue on cultural heritage, historical accountability, and the return of looted artifacts to their rightful homes in Africa. Applications for the fellowship are currently open. Visit our fellowships program to learn more.
Subscribe to our mailing list and get the latest news from The Africa Institute
