An IASH Work-in-Progress seminar, delivered by Dr Jéssica Hipolito (Stuart Hall Foundation Fellow, 2025-26)
Colonial Collections, Repatriation, and Restitution: Processes and Strategies for Reparation in the Black Atlantic
Colonial Collections, Repatriation, and Restitution: Processes and Strategies for Reparation in the Black Atlantic examines how museums in Brazil, Portugal, and the United Kingdom are engaging with debates around colonial collections, restitution, and reparation. The project explores strategies that move beyond financial compensation to restore human dignity, reconnect communities with their histories, and challenge enduring colonial narratives within museum practices. By situating these efforts within the broader frameworks of provenance research, repatriation policies, and community autonomy, the study seeks to understand how museums navigate the ethical and political complexities of decolonisation in practice.
The research analyses international documentation and policy frameworks guiding museum practice, successful cases of restitution and repatriation, and media and curatorial discourses across the three national contexts. It also maps antiracist and decolonial curatorial practices that reinterpret colonial collections, fostering inclusion and critical reflection within museums. At this stage, the project raises questions about the intersection of heritage, memory, and justice: How are institutions transforming their narratives to address historical wrongs, and what forms of reparation are possible through museum practice? The discussion will consider these issues comparatively and invite reflections on their broader implications for transformations in the museum and cultural heritage fields.
Meeting ID: 384 971 962 716 1
Passcode: nV6Rg79e