Benin- Kings and Rituals : Court Arts from Nigeria / Ed: Barbara Plankensteiner; Ursula Brandl-Straka

Curator: Yasmina Reggad. Abdelkader Benchamma collected minuscule stories with a predilection for fantastic and extraordinary apparitions or visions, which reveal the collective expectations, fantasies, needs and anxieties of a society at a certain time. Catalog of an exhibition held at Museum für Völkerkunde Wien, May 9-Sept. 3, 2007; Musée du quai Branly, Paris, Oct. 2, 2007-Jan. 6, 2008; Ethnologisches Museum - Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Feb. 7-May 25, 2008; and the Art Institute of Chicago, June 27-Sept. 21, 2008. This exhibition bringing together more than 300 pieces offers a panorama of art and culture in the kingdom of Benin, from the 14th to the 19th century. It also bears witness to the fall of this independent kingdom, its re-establishment in the 20th century and the survival of royalty. It is the first time that these masterpieces, dispersed all over the world at the end of the 19th century, are brought together in a large-scale exhibition and analyzed in the light of the most recent research. Beyond their intrinsic artistic value, the presentation reflects their documentary and historical interest and their ritual significance. Heads of museums and researchers from Nigeria, the United States and Europe participated in the design of this exhibition, prepared in close collaboration with the Nigerian authorities and the royal court of Benin. Exhibition October 2, 2007 ??? January 6, 2008 quai Branly museum, Paris. United States and Europe participated in the design of this exhibition, prepared in close collaboration with the Nigerian authorities and the royal court of Benin. Exhibition October 2, 2007-January 6, 2008 quai Branly Museum, Paris.

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