2016 - News - Detail Page - Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz

As part of a partnership between the Museums Association of Namibia (MAN) and the SPK, several researchers from Namibia have been guests at the Ethnological Museum of the National Museums in Berlin since spring 2019. Together with the museum's team of scientists, they analysed the approximately 1,400 objects in the museum's Namibia collection with regard to their history, significance and artistic potential. In the following project, "Confronting Colonial Pasts, Envisioning Creative Futures", made possible by the Gerda Henkel Foundation, 23 of these objects will travel to Namibia, including jewellery, prestige objects and historically important artefacts. Over the next three years, they will be further researched and made available to contemporary artists for creative exploration. This is the first time in Germany that such an open-ended process of co-operation has been initiated, which is largely determined by the Namibian partners.

Hermann Parzinger, President of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, emphasises: "In our work, we want to build sustainable relationships that are characterised by mutual respect and transparency in our dealings with one another. We have already practised this in a number of other major projects, for example with partners in Tanzania, Rwanda and the Amazon region. What makes this project unique and groundbreaking, however, is the extent and intensity with which the partners can work with the objects, as we not only invite guest researchers to work in Berlin, but by travelling the objects to Namibia, numerous local participants can also work with them on a long-term basis. The fact that the Gerda Henkel Foundation is funding this collaboration so generously is incredibly valuable and exemplary for us."

Golda Ha-Eiros, Chair of the Board of the Museums Association of Namibia, Curator of Liberation Heritage at the Ministry of Veterans Affairs and visiting scholar at the Ethnological Museum, sees great potential in the journey of the objects to Namibia: "Due to the history and knowledge in Namibian communities, the objects can unfold their full cultural, social and historical meanings in Namibia."

Michael Hanssler, Chairman of the Management Board of the Gerda Henkel Foundation, adds: "I hope that this pilot project can provide a twofold impetus: Firstly, in the direction of real cooperation on an equal footing with our Namibian partners in coming to terms with our colonial past. And secondly, in the direction of the federal and state governments to step up their efforts - and that means with significantly more financial resources - for the permanent restitution of objects from colonial contexts to the societies of origin. Loans from German museums to Namibian institutions can only be a first step. The ultimate goal must remain to promptly and permanently restitute those objects that have been looted or acquired under dubious circumstances."

The Namibia collections of the Ethnological Museum

Most of the historical collections from Namibia in the Ethnological Museum were acquired during the German colonial period (1884-1919). Their provenances have been researched since the beginning of 2018, in recent months together with the Namibian guest researchers. The collections reflect colonial appropriation processes, some of which were extremely violent. They also show the creativity and ingenuity of the people of Namibia. They are therefore an important source for historical research and a source of inspiration for contemporary artists and designers. Due to the German colonisation of Namibia, the vast majority of such objects are located in German and non-Namibian institutions and are therefore not accessible to most Namibians. The project funded by the Gerda Henkel Foundation, starting with the journey of the objects to Namibia, is a first step towards redressing this imbalance. Most of the funding, totalling around 400,000 euros, will go towards the work in Namibia.

Project "Confronting Colonial Pasts, Envisioning Creative Futures"

Over the past few weeks, the Namibian partners have selected 23 objects from the colonial Namibia collection in the Ethnological Museum to be loaned to the National Museum of Namibia. This was done in close consultation with community representatives in Namibia. In addition to MAN, the National Museum of Namibia and the University of Namibia are also project partners in "Confronting Colonial Pasts, Envisioning Creative Futures". In Germany and Namibia, the co-operative research on the collections will be continued and made available to the public and stakeholders.

In the further course of the project in Namibia, four workshops lasting several days are planned at the National Museum of Namibia and in cultural heritage communities to reactivate and document the knowledge associated with the objects and other forms of intangible cultural heritage, such as historical techniques and materials. In addition, the Gerda Henkel Foundation finances a conservator and a museologist at the National Museum of Namibia and supports the museum with capacity building workshops and materials for the preventive conservation of the collection. It also facilitates the establishment of two scholarships at the University of Namibia that allow postgraduate students to take the research from the museum to the heritage communities.

The inspiration provided by the artefacts from Berlin will also be incorporated into MAN's planned Museum of Namibian Fashion. In this context, other key elements of the project include the production of artworks that engage with the historical collections, the appointment of a curator to design the inaugural exhibition of the Museum of Namibian Fashion and the museum itself. The aim is to build capacity for the preservation and further development of collections in Namibia.

Hertha Bukassa, Cultural Officer at the Namibian Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture and visiting researcher at the Ethnological Museum in Berlin: "The objects show that we have preserved our cultures despite the threat of colonisation."

Nehoa Kautodonkwa, Museum Development Manager, Museums Association of Namibia, emphasises the potential of engaging with historical objects: "I believe that objects are a form of unique archives that can help us create alternative narratives. We are excited about the stories that these objects will reveal to us."

For Jonathan Fine, curator of the collections from West Africa and Namibia at the Ethnologisches Museum, the project is characterised by its collaborative process: "The future of ethnological museums lies in bringing people together to reactivate dormant knowledge and create new ways of understanding each other."

Julia Binter, provenance researcher at the Ethnological Museum, adds: "This project combines two perspectives, looking back and looking forward, the examination of the colonial past and the vision of a creative future."

Larissa Förster, scientific advisor to the project, emphasises the exchange of knowledge and expertise: "The history of Namibian objects in German museums has not been dealt with for a long time. In this cooperation project, the power of interpretation is shared, if not shifted to Namibian stakeholders."

Museums Association of Namibia

The Museums Association of Namibia (MAN) is a non-governmental organisation that represents museums and cultural heritage institutions throughout Namibia. It receives an annual grant from the Namibian Government and has been mandated to facilitate the establishment of heritage institutions as spaces for community empowerment and education at regional and local level and to support these institutions with advice and expertise.

Further links

• Press kit German
• Press kit English
• Press photos
• Interview with the project participants of "Confronting Colonial Pasts" on the SMB blog