You Hide Me: 50 Years On – Webinar Series
The series of webinars in this showcase was organised by the June Givanni Pan African Cinema Archive (JGPACA) with partners SOAS/African Screen Worlds; AFFORD; and The Africa Centre; with assistance and support from The Art Fund and MayDay Rooms. The film You Hide Me was made by Ghanaian filmmaker Nii Kwate Owoo in the British Museum in London in 1970 and presented the case for the restitution of African art, which is still resonant today. This series was arranged to mark the 50th anniversary of this film and bring it to wider attention. The film – which is held in the JGPACA – can also be seen on the Vimeo on Demand platform: vimeo.com/ondemand/youhideme
You Hide Me: 50 Years On (Pt. 1 of Webinar Series) – Restitution, Curating & Teaching African Art
https://vimeo.com/489442896 (07@mbkno@05)
The first in this series of 4 webinars foregrounds the need to rethink the sources of knowledge and institutional frameworks that underpin the curating and teaching of African art, and the value of Africa’s historical cultural knowledge for a better understanding of the issue of restitution.
You Hide Me: 50 Years On (Pt. 2 of Webinar Series) – Restitution and the Moving Image
https://vimeo.com/489557174 (07@mbkno@05)
The second event in the You Hide Me: 50 Years On webinar series focusses on the demand for restitution in the context of African film and moving image archives more generally.
You Hide Me: 50 Years On (Pt. 3 of Webinar Series) – Restitution & Securing African Heritage
https://vimeo.com/489790654 (07@mbkno@05)
The third event in the You Hide Me: 50 Years On webinar series discusses the topic of restitution in relation to the role of African organisations such as the Africa Centre in having a voice in defending the future of African heritage.
You Hide Me: 50 Years On (Pt. 4 of Webinar Series) – Actions Going Forward
https://vimeo.com/489988050 (07@mbkno@05)
The fourth webinar in the You Hide Me: 50 Years On webinar series draws together the main discussion points, ideas and suggestions for taking forward the issues raised around this broad and resonant topic of the restitution of African Art. It was held on 24 November 2020.
THE FILM:
‘YOU HIDE ME!’ | On Vimeo VOD
“In 1970, ‘YOU HIDE ME’ a film written, produced and directed by Nii Kwate Owoo, Ghanaian documentary and feature film maker, on the colonization of African art, was seen as controversial. The film is an expose of the theft and concealment of ancient and rare African Art, hidden in plastic bags and wooden boxes in the basement of the British Museum. For many the film heightened the already growing antagonism towards Western art establishments, and the role they played in the looting and hoarding of precious works of art from the ancient cultures of the world.” Nii Kwate Owoo https://vimeo.com/ondemand/youhideme