Togo: Forging New Connections
Starts Sat, 28 November 2026
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| 9 EUR – Exhibition ticket for Ethnologische Sammlungen and Museum für Asiatische Kunst required |
| Ethnologisches Museum, 2nd floor, Room 210 |
| Opening hours closed |
How can colonial collections be reinterpreted today? This exhibition invites critical exploration by juxtaposing historical objects from Togo with contemporary artistic perspectives.
The relationship between Togo and Germany is shaped by their history – a divided history: from 1884 to 1914, Togo was a German colony defined by this imbalance of power. The Ethnologisches Museum still holds cultural belongings from Togo dating to this period. Their acquisition was characterised by violence and exploitation on the German side, and by resistance and strategic adaptation on the Togolese side.
At the heart of the exhibition, Togolese researchers present selected cultural belongings from the collection. It was particularly important to them not only to make the entire range of the museum’s holdings accessible but also to highlight the population’s resistance at the time, as well as their cultural diversity. Contemporary artists from Togo produced new works specifically for the exhibition, creating a space of experience resonating with many voices to make clear how the unresolved past continues to shape the present to this day.
This raises certain questions: if we wish to forge new connections between Togo and Germany, how should we shape our approach to dealing with the holdings from Togo to be more responsible and forward-looking?