Dakar’s Museum of Black Civilisations: Towards a New Imaginary of a Post-ethnographic Museum
Journal Title: Martor. The Museum of the Romanian Peasant Anthropology Review - Year 2018, Vol 23, Issue 23
Abstract
How are postcolonial identities curated in non-Western art institutions? How do the latter engage with the question of the restitution of colonial looted artefacts during this turning point where Western museums seem increasingly willing to address claims of repatriation? Focusing on the unfolding debates on restitution and heritage around the new Museum of Black Civilisations (MCN) in Senegal, the article investigates how curatorial approaches aimed at challenging Eurocentrism address questions of identity, authenticity and discourses on the Other. It finds that, contrary to decolonial museum exhibitions in the West, the MCN avoids engaging in claims of restitution as this would reproduce Europe’s key role in defining “authentic” and “traditional” African art. At the same time, this paper shows that the underlying logic aimed to subvert exoticising representations and reconfigure Self-Other relations can uphold an internal dichotomy of cultures that risks lapsing into the same essentialism that is criticised. This is furthermore complicated by the tension between an imaginary of pan-African Black Civilisations and the criticism directed towards the management of artefacts in postcolonial states where nation-building is an ongoing process. In teasing out the challenges of formulating a reconfigured postcolonial future without drawing on culturalist discourses and reinforcing a dichotomy between modernity and tradition, this article adds a radically different perspective to the literature on heritage and museums in relation to colonialism and is also of relevance to those looking at curatorial practices, identity politics and international relations.
Authors and Affiliations
Charline Kopf
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP401721
- DOI -
- Views 135
- Downloads 0
The Image of the Teacher in the Memories of Sofia English Language School’s Alumni From the 1970s
The article aims at gaining a better understanding of the everyday life in an elite socialist school in Bulgaria. The text discusses why Bulgarian communist authorities not simply acquiesced to but actually supported the...
Cornel Micu, From Peasants to Farmers? Agrarian Reforms and Modernisation in Twentieth Century Romania. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang, 2012
The two guest-editors of the volume have decided to include in the special issue a book review section for two reasons. First, the reviewed books have close links with the agrarian question, the topic of the special issu...
Species-rich Mountain Grasslands Through the Eyes of the Farmer: Flora, Species Composition, and Extensive Grassland Management
Species-rich semi-natural grasslands are important components of European cultural landscapes. In Transylvania, Romania, they are managed by extensive land-use systems which, in turn, are maintained to this day through i...
Studium post negotium. La première génération d’étudiants de Bessarabie (République de Moldavie) en Roumanie (1990‐1991): redéfinitions identitaires, stratégies de survie, tentatives de profit
Une partie des étudiants provenant de la République Soviétique Socialiste Moldave (del’URSS) de la première promotion (année académique 1990/1991) en Roumanie a tenté de tirer parti d’avantages «secondaires» de la libéra...
Neither Peasant, Nor Farmer. Transformations of Agriculture in Serbia after 2000
This paper tries to point to the current problems of Serbian peasantry. Even though the title indicates that the paper deals predominantly with identity issues of Serbian peasants, yet it rather depicts and explains a de...