Understanding restitution: new exhibition Unfinished pasts opens soon

Wereldmuseum is one of the institutions actively engaged in the debate around restitution, which has intensified over the past decade. The museum’s founding collection originated in the colonial period, a time when objects were often taken or looted from colonised territories without consultation or consent. Today, the museum is working closely with other museums and universities to address how best to deal with artworks in its collection that carry the weight of this colonial past. 

The exhibition is rooted in Pressing Matter: Ownership, Value and the Question of Colonial Heritage in Museums, a major research project that brings together scholars and artists to investigate critical questions: How did these objects from different colonial contexts find their way into European museums? Were they purchased or stolen? What role did missionaries and scientists play? Who owns these objects? What is their value, and how should we engage with a heritage marked by a contested past?

It is a search for clarity that is becoming ever more urgent – particularly as former colonies increasingly call for the return of their cultural heritage.

The exhibition explores the complexity of these questions through thematic sessions, each addressing a different dimension – from objects looted during military expeditions and legal discussions about what constitutes spoils of war or stolen art, to questions about scientific and cultural value and the legacy of cultural erasure. These themes are brought to life through 200 objects from the Wereldmuseum’s collection – objects that may seem ordinary at first glance but hold deep significance in their original cultural contexts. 

Unfinished Pasts is an experimental, question-driven exhibition that invites visitors to think along with the museum about the ongoing pursuit of justice, reparation, and reconciliation. A key source of inspiration are the six contemporary international artists and collectives – Pansee Atta, Daniel Aguilar Ruvalcaba, Aram Lee, Zara Julius & Zoé Samudzi, Hande Sever & Gelare Khoshgozaran, Lifepatch – whose critical, creative, and emotional works offer alternative futures for this contested heritage. Their contributions give these complex questions a human face and bring them to life.

Visitors also get an insight into the questions museum staff grapple with on a daily basis. They encounter case studies of provenance research into objects that raise new questions about ownership, value, and the future of colonial collections. Notably, these investigations often lead to more questions than answers. 

The exhibition Unfinished Pasts is on view from 9 May 2025 to 3 January 2027 at Wereldmuseum Amsterdam.

Pressing Matter is a four-year international research programme on colonial heritage, funded by the Dutch National Research Agenda (NWA) and coordinated by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. The project investigates how collections acquired during the colonial period can help us better understand the past and how that past continues to shape the present. It explores questions of ownership and value and the potential these collections hold for contemporary society, both in the Netherlands and the countries of origin.