Africa’s Struggle for its Art: History of a Postcolonial Defeat 1965-1985

In the wake of postcolonial African independence, African intellectuals and politicians spearheaded a movement to pursue repatriation of artworks stolen during the colonial era and placed in Western museums.  Art Historian and curator Bénédicte Savoy brings to light this largely unknown but deeply important history.  An expert on restitution and cultural heritage, Savoy reconstructs a story of missed opportunity and defeat that still resonates in today’s repatriation discourse.   

Bénédicte Savoy is a professor of modern art history at the Technical University of Berlin, Germany, and professor for the cultural history of European art at the Collège de France in Paris, France.