CURATORS' GUIDED TOUR

“Benin. The collection at the Weltkulturen Museum. Perspectives”
with curator Julia Friedel

There are 57 objects from Benin in the Weltkulturen Museum collection, made of metal, wood and ivory. The exhibition “Retrospective” examined when they entered the collection and under which conditions. In “Perspectives” we are looking to the future. Various cultural actors from Nigeria and the diaspora will have their say: the illustrator and designer Osaze Amadasun reinterprets major events from 16th-century Benin in his series “Once Upon A Kingdom”. Multi-media artist Mayowa Tomori uses 3D scans to question the accessibility of objects in museum collections. Seun Adeyemi creates graphic works that give a voice to historical objects from the Kingdom of Benin. In her novel “Butterfly Fish”, author Irenosen Okojie links aspects of the history of the Kingdom of Benin with the life of a young woman in present-day London.

These works reveal how important it is for the young generation that they explore their cultural heritage and find new ways of expressing it. The works of art are supplemented by interviews with scholars from Nigeria which were conducted by historian Rasheed Hassan in Benin City in 2023. We want to ensure that these voices are heard. What is their attitude to the debate on restitution? And how do they imagine the future of these objects?

Curator Julia Friedel take visitors on a tour around the exhibition, while explaining the provenance stories that are encapsulated within the objects on display.

Entrance is free of charge
Cost of the tour included in the entrance fee
Weltkulturen Museum, Schaumainkai 37