(Tr)african(t)s, a pioneering project to review the colonial heritage of Catalan museums

One of the objectives of (Tr)african(t)s is to critically review of the colonial heritage preserved in Catalan public museums. Therefore, the research team analysed 3,531 objects, of which 1,923 met scientific criteria to be considered colonial heritage. Finally, 255 pieces were studied and catalogued using a unified provenance record model, aligned with European standards. Most of the objects came from Morocco, Senegal, Equatorial Guinea, Nigeria and the Philippines.

Alberto López Bargados, professor at the Department of Social Anthropology at the UB and lead researcher on (Tr)african(t)s, highlights the importance of the project: "(Tr)african(t)s has provided an opportunity to address and stimulate a process of redress for colonialism in Catalonia.

he work carried out by the research team has made it possible to trace the origin and conditions of acquisition of the pieces and collections from the Spanish colonial empire in Morocco, Equatorial Guinea and the Philippines, which are now preserved in the network of public museums in Catalonia. At the same time, it has encouraged collective reflection among Catalan and global citizens on the rights of people to enjoy their own culture."

Museums have been key to the development of the project. Institutions such as the Ethnology and World Cultures Museum (MUEC), the Víctor Balaguer Library Museum, the Barcelona's Natural Science Museum, the Darder Museum, the Igualada and Anoia Regional Museu de la Pell, and the Museu de l'Art de la Pell have contributed pieces from their collections.

Of the selected sample, the 166 objects from the MUEC stand out. In particular, those that form part of the collection of Núñez de Prado, colonial governor of Equatorial Guinea between 1926 and 1931, on which clear signs of systematic plundering and colonial violence have been identified, and the Philippine collection of José Coronado, related to colonial and missionary networks.

These 166 pieces include ritual objects, weapons, sculptures and body adornments. The task has consisted of identifying the contexts of colonial appropriation, and critically reviewing the terminology and museographic narratives associated with the collections. This work underpins the documentary Expedient 71 and opens avenues for potential restitution processes and collaboration with institutions in Equatorial Guinea and the Philippines.

On 10 April, the documentary 'Expedient 71' will be released, exploring colonial plundering in Equatorial Guinea.

Wood carving, bulol made to order. This size could
have been made specifically for display at the General
Exhibition of the Philippine Islands in Madrid in 1887.
This figure was most likely made in the province of
Ifugao, where wood carving was much more common
than in the rest of northern Luzon. Specifically, it could
come from the village of Hapao, where carving
figures for the tourist trade and collectors is still
practised today. Philippine Collection, Museum of
Ethnology and World Cultures (MuEC)

Catalan colonialism in the Philippines, an analysis

Another case addressed by (Tr)african(t)s is Catalan colonialism in the Philippines, through the study of 48 pieces from the Víctor Balaguer Library Museum in Vilanova i la Geltrú. The project has identified serious cataloguing errors and identified objects linked to colonial exhibition practices and forms of symbolic violence. Collaboration with the communities of origin, through Baguio University in the Philippines or roundtable discussions, has been key.

More than 60 people from the diaspora and indigenous communities of the Philippines have actively participated in the project, which has enabled dialogues on memory to be opened and a critical reading of the objects and museographic narratives to be carried out.

Educational and informative dimension

In addition to the premiere of the documentary Expedient 71, the (Tr)african(t)s research team has launched the travelling exhibition "Who does history belong to?", aimed especially at young audiences. After visiting Reus and Salt, this January it was exhibited at the UB's Faculty of Geography and History and will now travel to the University of Lleida.

Other planned actions include the development of an educational application to complement the project's content, and the publication of the book Espectres a la vitrina. Museus de Catalunya davant la colonialitat (Manifest Llibres).

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