Restitution: Africa’s Stolen Art – Plunder

In the 19th and 20th centuries, European powers colonised the African continent and plundered its cultural artefacts on a massive scale.

Pieces of great local significance were pillaged by invading soldiers, seized by the colonial authorities, or taken by Christian missionaries.

The Europeans then put these works on display in their museums, in ethnographic exhibitions labelled “Negro Art”.

The works inspired artists like Pablo Picasso to produce some of the most innovative art of the 20th century.

This is episode 1 of a 3-part series. Watch episode 2 here and episode 3 here.