| | | GROUP50:50, a collective of artists from Congo, Switzerland, and Germany will present »The Ghosts Are Returning,« a post-documentary music performance about seven pygmy skeletons brought to Geneva from Congo by a Swiss doctor in the 1950s. Unlike many African skeletons languishing in the archives of European museums, the names, approximate origins, dates, and causes of death of these seven are known, and their descendants can be found within the nomadic Mbuti people of the forests of the Congo. But do these descendants want the skeletons and spirits of their ancestors back? Because what is rarely considered in the debate about restitution is that returning masks, skulls, and skeletons also bring back the spirits that the Europeans stole and locked away during the colonial era. An accompanying discourse programme takes place each afternoon ahead of the performances, and will include guests such as Christian Nyampeta, KMRU, Lars-Christian Koch, Sarah Imani, and more. | | |
