Members of this committee identified categories of African artworks that may be prioritized for provenance research, collaborative projects, and/or restitution, bearing in mind that this may be a tiered and ongoing process. Their driving question was: where should museums begin this work on their collections? Some categories considered included artworks collected in Africa during the colonial era, artworks collected in Africa after 1970, human remains, archaeological materials, sacred grave or shrine goods, and artworks documented as having been looted during conflicts. The committee envisioned that all categories recommended for restitution or repatriation would equally be applied to museum acquisition policies as groups of objects that require particular attention and should be discouraged as candidates for acquisition going forward.
Co-chairs:
Yaëlle Biro
Karen E. Milbourne
Members:
Toyin E. Akinde
Laura de Becker
Ndubuisi Ezeluomba
Henone Girma
Erica P. Jones
Stephen Kasumba
Christine M. Kreamer
Elizabeth Gron Morton
Gemma Rodrigues
Jessica Stephenson
Margaret Tamulonis
Carol Thompson