NGZ director Raphael Chikukwa in Dakar for worksho...

NGZ director Raphael Chikukwa in Dakar for workshop

Audrey Galawu

National Gallery of Zimbabwe director, Raphael Chikukwa is attending a three-day workshop in Dakar, Senegal which started yesterday and ends on April 27, aimed at fostering interaction between 60 museum directors from 29 African and 12 European countries.

The workshop, which is running under the theme “Strengthening Partnerships”, is focusing on empowerment, exhibitions and collections.

The aim is to set up a sustainable network that will implement an ambitious long-term multilateral partnership programme among museums themselves.

The workshop in Dakar will define priorities for such partnership and seek support from policy makers and funding agencies.

The workshop will empower directors in attendance to identify expertise in each of the museums and organise mutual exchanges and mobility of staff for capacity building, a better knowledge of each-other’s museum, collections and working environment.

In terms of exhibitions, the workshop will focus on the need for artists to work together, conduct joint field research and acquisitions, revise conservation, transport and insurance standards for loans, change narrative in museums, in Africa and in Europe and develop capacity building in exhibition design and digital communication.

Artists in attendance will also work to collaborate to document collections and develop provenance research, adopt a standard database system with guaranteed maintenance affordable, mutualise efforts for a systematic digitalisation and photography campaign of collections.

Chikukwa said the need to expand networks and fostering Africa to Africa Connection can benefit the country in terms of Africa and European Museum collaboration.

“Some of the issues in the workshop are empowerment, role and function of museums, travelling exhibitions, conducting joint exhibitions, conservation, restoration, collection inventory management and preservation methods the use of local knowledge and bare foot professors out there in villages whose knowledge remain marginalised because of colonial education systems.

“In the next six months, the gallery continues with its exhibition programme throughout Zimbabwe but our energy is also on our new baby National Gallery of Zimbabwe Victoria Falls refurbishment of the Chinotimba House. Some of the challenges that we continue to encounter remain funding and getting our local people to appreciate local art.

“It’s important for local people to appreciate local art for it is appropriated by outsiders. If you buy local art, it means empowering the local artists.

“It remains my hope that by the end of the workshop, we can create an African Museum Association that should allow us to exchange and network in our continent. Africa to Africa Connection is key to our future of museums in Africa,” Chikukwa said.