#Restitutions: The art objects in question
When: 17.11.2026 19:00
Where: 48.850289, 2.326965
Organizer: Admin
Art objects, ritual objects, memory objects: how to rethink
their history beyond the categories that shaped our gaze on
Art and heritage?
What happens when an object is returned to its community
original? In addition to legal and political issues, the question of
the restitution invites to question the very status of the objects retained
in museums, the narratives that surround them and the looks that their
are carried.
The fourth discussion of the #Restitutions cycle. Another definition of the world proposes
multidisciplinary reflection on the concept of "work" and "object"
Art", taking into account cultural, ritual,
the political and social aspects that communities attribute to these objects. From
many goods today presented as works of art in the
museums of the former colonizing countries had originally functions
ritual, political or social. Their exhibition contributed to
transform their status.
Emmanuel Kasarhérou, President of the Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, and Didier Houénoudé, Professor
Universities in Art History at Abomey-Calavi University at
Benin, will discuss how history has shaped what we
"Art" and "Heritage" and will seek
deconstruct these legacies to better engage communities
origin.
The exchanges will be moderated by journalist Valérie Nivelon (RFI).
Stakeholders
Didier Houénoudé is professor of universities in
Art history at Abomey-Calavi University in Benin. He
interest in contemporary African art, issues
Heritage and their re-appropriation by source communities
(restitution of African cultural property), urban planning and
development of African cities. Visiting Professor at Technische
Universität Dresden in Germany (2023-2024), he was Deputy Director
of the national ethnographic collections of Saxony (2025)
and is a member of the Advisory Committee of the Stiftung Preußischer
Kulturbesitz (Foundation for Prussian Cultural Heritage). It is
Vice-Chairman of the International Committee for Museology
(ICOFOM) and holder of the UNESCO Chair: Returns and refunds of
cultural property: matrimonies, communities and rights
culture. Didier Houenoudé is the author of many articles and
works on Beninese art and cultural heritage.
Emmanuel Kasarhérou is curator general of the
heritage and president of the Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac. After
he was appointed in 1985 as a professor of history and archaeology in Paris.
Curator of the Museum of New Caledonia. In 1994, he joined
the Agency for the Development of Kanak Culture (ADCK) and participates in the
design of the Tjibaou Cultural Centre, for which he
from 2006 to 2011. He then joined the Museum of the Quai Branly –
Jacques Chirac, where he designed the Kanak exhibition. Art is
a statement, before being appointed Deputy Director of Heritage and Heritage
collections in 2014. He was appointed president of the museum on May 27, 2020.
Journalist and sound documentary artist, Valérie Nivelon leads
of historical surveys and participates in research programs
memory scientists. To the sound of sound archives and testimonies,
it produces radio stories from the point of view of the actors and
witnesses, in order to tell history differently. She moves
on African land for more than 20 years and
participate in the emergence of female figures in history.
Valérie Nivelon received the Scam Award for Best Radio Broadcast in 2011.
#Restitutions. Another World Definition
A cycle of meetings co-designed and hosted by Valérie Nivelon (on the initiative of the African Podcast Queens and the show The March of the World on RFI).
On 7 June 1978, Amadou Mahtar Mbow, first African director
of Unesco, launched a "solemnal call" to all the
Governments, cultural institutions, museums, libraries,
historians and artists, for the restitution of cultural property to their
country of origin. Almost 50 years after this founding call, what about
the question of return?
The cycle "#Restitutions. Another World Definition »
proposes a space for reflection and dialogue on issues of
restitution of works of art and cultural property acquired in contexts
of violence and domination, and challenges of memory, justice and
the circulation of the wealth they raise. Through seven
meetings between researchers, lawyers, curators and stakeholders
the cycle aims to provide the keys to understanding and
contribute to fairer, concerted and sustainable practices.
→ Further information
Tags: panel, restitution, heritage, art
Source: https://www.paris.fr/evenements/restitutions-les-archives-en-question-117281
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