Authentically African: Arts and the Transnational Politics of Congolese Culture (New African Histories)

Synopsis

Together The Royal Museum For Central Africa In Tervuren, Belgium And The Institut Des Musées Nationaux Du Zaïre (inmz) In The Congo Have Defined And Marketed Congolese Art And Culture. In Authentically African, Sarah Van Beurden Traces The Relationship Between The Possession, Definition, And Display Of Art And The Construction Of Cultural Authenticity And Political Legitimacy From The Late Colonial Into The Postcolonial Era. Her Study Of The Interconnected Histories Of These Two Institutions Is The Only Work Of Its Kind In English. Drawing On Flemish-language Sources Other Scholars Have Been Unable To Access, Van Beurden Illuminates The Politics Of Museum Collections, Showing How The Inmz Became A Showpiece In Mobutu Sese Seko's Effort To Revive Authentic African Culture And Reconstructing Debates Among Belgian And Congolese Museum Professionals. She Also Casts Light On The Art Market, Showing How Imnz's Traveling Displays Helped Generate An International Market For Congolese Art. Authentically African Tells A New History Of Decolonization As A Struggle Over Cultural Categories, The Possession Of Cultural Heritage, And The Right To Define And Represent Cultural Identities--back Cover. Introduction. Congolese History And The Politics Of Culture -- The Value Of Culture : Congolese Art And Belgian Colonialism -- Guardians Of Heritage : A Politique Esthétique And The Museum As A Laboratory Of Native Policy -- The Art Of (re)possession : Heritage And The Cultural Politics Of Congo's Decolonization -- Mobutu's Museum : Authenticity And Guardianship -- Civilizing Citizens? : Museums As Brokers Of Postcolonial Zairian Modernity -- Belgian Patrimony, Zairian Treasure, And American Heritage : The Transnational Politics Of Congolese Art -- Conclusion. Colonial And Postcolonial Legacies. Sarah Van Beurden. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 329-363) And Index.