EDITORIAL
Dear Reader,
Let’s not forget that First World War Centenary commemorations are still taking place up and down the country, while new research on the contribution of former colonies is underway. In this issue of the Black and Asian Heritage Mix’, I invite you to read British historian Marika Sherwood’s excellent article titled “Racism by Omission”, if you want to know more about lesser known areas on this topic. Interestingly, that article was written almost a decade ago! Marika’s Wikipage also include a wider publication list on (Black) British History.
Britain is not the only European country that struggles with its colonial past and issues relating to historical interpretation and truth. Similar debates are occurring in Germany, the Netherlands etc. At a time when the UK is preparing to leave the European Union, newly elected French President Emmanuel Macron has re-ignited the debate on the decolonisation of European museum heritage.
Thushari Perera
Black Europe Resources
WORLD WAR I CENTENARY
Racism by omission: Frequently omitted from military histories, Marika Sherwood examines the vital contribution of the colonies in the First World War
(HistoryExtra, 29 December 2009)
Read more here
FRANCE
Is French President Emmanuel Macron Trying to Decolonise European Museums?
(Black Europe Resources, 7 February 2018)
Read more here
UK
SOFT POWER & CULTURAL DIPLOMACY
Crown jewel: the soft power of William and Kate’s Nordic visit
(The Guardian, 27 January 2018)
Read more here
Deals worth £300 million forge cultural links with China
(Asian Image, 1 February 2018)
Read more here
MUSEUM
London
Queen reopens British Museum gallery, 25 years after unveiling original: The Sir Joseph Hotung Gallery of China and South Asia has been restored and renovated.
(BT.com, 8 November 2017)
Read more here
Jinnah’s bust unveiled at British Museum – It has now moved to the Lincoln’s Inn Library
(Easterneye, 13 December 2017)
Read more here
Scotland
National Museum of Scotland in colonialism row after ‘unsettling’ exhibition
(The Herald, 17 January 2017)
Read more here
TELEVISION
First look at BBC’s epic new art history series Civilisations: The remake of Kenneth Clark’s 1969 landmark series will see Simon Schama, Mary Beard and David Olusoga explore “humanity’s urge to create”
(Radio Times, 8 February 2018)
Read more here
BBC Civilisations website here
HERITAGE SITES
National Sikh War Memorial Trust attracts £375K in funding
(New Asian Post, 30 January 2018)
Read more here
Where Are the Bengalis in London’s Banglatown? Brick Lane, once renowned for its Bengali immigrants, is changing.
(The Diplomat, 28 December 2018)
Read more here
Brick Lane exposed: a 1980s view of east London – in pictures Raju Vaidyanathan has lived in Brick Lane in London’s Tower Hamlets all his life. In 1983, he acquired an old second-hand camera and started taking photos, but without enough money to print them he left the negatives stored in boxes. He began developing them 18 months ago. ‘I thought there might be a couple of thousand, but never realised that there would be about 8,000 in the first two boxes alone,’ he said
(The Guardian, 6 March 2017)
Read more here
HERITAGE PERSONALITY
Why David Adjaye’s Black History Museum won design of the year
(GQ, 26 January 2018)
Read more here
THE NETHERLANDS
Dutch museum row reopens uneasy debate about colonial legacy Mauritshuis, home of Vermeer’s Girl With a Pearl Earring, removes bust of slave-trader founder
(The Guardian, 25 January 2018)
Read more here
GERMANY
New initiatives to deal with Germany’s colonial heritage
(Deutsche Welle, 29 January 2018)
Read more here
UK EVENTS PICK 12-18 FEBRUARY 2018
Find out more here
Black Europe Resources 