Within the framework of "Afrika pågår" (translated "Ongoing Africa"), the Museum of Etnography organizes workshops, lectures, exhibitions and artistic expressions for several years around the museum's collections from Africa. In close collaboration with audiences, users, researchers and artists, we explore what this cultural heritage means and how it can be used today.
"Afrika pågår" is an exploratory and method-developing dialogue project with the aim of highlighting new perspectives on the African continent with and by Swedes of African origin. One ambition is to make the museum's collections from Africa relevant to a larger and new audience.
With the help of our audience and various collaborations with actors (researchers, artists, activists) in Sweden and in Africa, a lot of activities will take place over several years. Part of this means that we create an exhibition space / dialogue area with space for various temporary exhibitions, activities and events - here we intend to try and test different ways to activate our collections and create interesting meetings with our audience. This exhibition / dialogue area will be on floor two in the museum, between the North America and Indigenous people sections.
But "Afrika pågår" will make a lot of imprint both inside and outside of the Museum of Ethnography. Partly through various program series, workshops, artistic exploration of the collections and the introduction of new school programs. But also in the form of outreach activities and collaborations with actors such as Tensta Konsthall and upcoming hip hop artists. An example of an activity within the framework of "Afrika pågår" is the Afrosvenska History Week, held at the museum in October 2017.
The name "Afrika pågår"" describes the project's ambition to be based partly on the continent's endless diversity and impatient variability, and partly on the fact that there is a myriad possible way in the present to approach and activate the historical collections, archives, exhibitions and subject areas managed by the National Museums of World Culture .
