Africa, Art History, and the (University) Museum: approaches to object-led teaching and display
African artworks, makers, and narratives are increasingly – if belatedly – a focus of British, European and American art markets and exhibitions, with attendant increases in the number of books focused on African art, and aspirations to create more undergraduate and postgraduate teaching courses around this area. At the same time, African material culture remains largely relegated to archaeological, ethnographic or anthropological museum collections, perpetuating their marginalisation within the history of art. Art history departments and museums are challenged to meaningfully integrate African visual and material culture into a broader array of university curricula and displays.
We invite proposals for 20-minute papers that explore issues and themes such as:
- How might more accurate conceptions of African art be embedded in university teaching and museum displays?
- How might African collections, especially in local museums, be better utilised in history of art pedagogy?
- How can archaeological and anthropological collections be integrated into a more complex understanding of African artistic societies?
- How can universities upskill teaching staff in the necessary intellectual frameworks to ensure that the study of African art is not limited by unsuitable art historical approaches and epistemological frameworks?
- What resources are needed for researching and teaching African art?
- Whose voices need to be heard in any such endeavour?
- How can universities ensure that the teaching of African art does not further embed notions of ‘otherness’ or ‘exoticness’?
- What creative methods can we use to teach African art?
We welcome submissions from museum professionals and educators, and are open to alternative formats for contributions, including creative responses and/or practice-based approaches.
Submit your Paper via this form. Please download, complete and send it directly to the Session Convenor(s) below by Sunday 2 November 2025:
Eva Namusoke, The Fitzwilliam Museum, enn21@cam.ac.uk
Teresa Soley, University of Cambridge, ts992@cam.ac.uk
Neal Spencer, The Fitzwilliam Museum, nas1003@cam.ac.uk