Δ BOOK LAUNCH

What is restitution? 
Book launch at the Weltkulturen Museum
With Kodzo Gavua and Hans Peter Hahn, moderated by Larissa Förster 

What is the objective of the restitution of cultural artefacts? How can restitution be viewed as a way of valuing cultural heritage? And what role is played by the various actors involved in the process of restitution? Kodzo Gavua (University of Ghana, Legon) and Hans Peter Hahn (Goethe University, Frankfurt) address these and many other questions in their new book, ‘Was ist Restitution?’ (What is Restitution?), published by Suhrkamp Verlag. At the Weltkulturen Museum, they will present the book to the public for the first time in a discussion moderated by museum director Larissa Förster. The topic of restitution is also of particular significance to the Weltkulturen Museum: its extensive collection includes numerous objects from colonial contexts and thus also raises questions of provenance and restitution.

Kodzo Gavua and Hans Peter Hahn do not view restitution as a one-off action, but as a long-term process. This process begins long before the actual return of the objects and does not end when the cultural artefact arrives at its destination. Rather, restitution is the result of ongoing cooperations and brings together those involved through their shared interest in achieving a long-term cultural, social and academic impact.

As Chair of the Ghana Focal Team on Restitution and Reparation, Kodzo Gavua will also draw on his own experiences with restitution processes. The Ghana Focal Team supports the restitution of Ghanaian cultural  artefacts and intangible cultural heritage through, amongst other things, research to establish the basis for restitution claims and by conducting diplomatic negotiations.

Kodzo Gavua is Associate Professor of Archaeology and Heritage Studies at the University of Ghana.

Hans Peter Hahn is Professor of Social and Cultural Anthropology at Goethe University Frankfurt am Main.

The event is organised in collaboration with Suhrkamp Verlag.

Bibliographic details:

Was ist Restitution? Kodzo Gavua, Hans Peter Hahn Publication date: 13 October 2026, 120 pages, Languages: German, suhrkamp taschenbuch, 978-3-518-30107-4

Venue: Weltkulturen Labor, Schaumainkai 37
Free admission
In English

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Δ PRESENTATION

Land rights and (spiritual) resistance – The Kaiowá’s struggle for the Panambi territory in Brazil

With Ana Amélia Concianza, Ademilson Concianza Verga, Gilearde Barbosa Pedro, Fernanda Concianza da Silva, Hidalgo Romero and Luiza Serber

The Panambi region in south-western Brazil has long been the territory of the Kaiowá. However, in the mid-20th century, with the support of the Brazilian government, the land was occupied by white settlers and is now part of the global industrial agricultural system. The Kaiowá’s resistance to this dispossession continues to this day – both politically and spiritually.

This is also evidenced by a collection of drawings held at the Weltkulturen Museum. The drawings were produced in 1949–50 for the Brazilian ethnologist Egon Schaden and depict the Brazilian state’s encroachment on Kaiowá territory as well as the Kaiowá’s ritual resistance. As part of the “WAYS – Fair and Sustainable International Partnerships” funding programme run by the German Federal Cultural Foundation, the drawings are to be reconnected with the people of their community of origin, thereby serving as a starting point for new forms of artistic collaboration.

To mark this occasion, a delegation from the Kaiowá is visiting the Weltkulturen Museum to view the drawings and engage with their history. As part of the event, the guests from Brazil will share their knowledge of their country’s history, as well as the struggles and acts of resistance of their community, with the Frankfurt public.

Languages: Kaiowá and Brazilian Portuguese, translated into English and (if required) into German

Free admission
Venue: Getäfelter Raum, Weltkulturen Museum, Schaumainkai 37

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Δ EVENT

Beams & Bumps
Social hub with concerts and DJ sets

The new event series ‘Beams & Bumps’ brings unheard sounds into the light, shakes up our listening habits, and sparks new perspectives.

It invites people to come together regularly, linger and engage in spontaneous exchanges. Over drinks at a cosy bar, the Weltkulturen Museum presents a programme of unconventional, trans-traditional musical and sound practices, performances and DJ sets – free from the boundaries between genres, cultures or time periods. Sometimes the artistic works make an acoustic reference to the museum’s collections; at other times, they stand entirely on their own. The series thus expands the Weltkulturen Museum’s musical focus whilst simultaneously creating space for new forms of exchange.

The format breaks with conventional concert structures and offers space for open, communal interaction. Among other things, twelve historic chairs – once used at Goethe University and later at the Weltkulturen Museum – provide opportunities to linger. For ‘Beams & Bumps’, they have been redesigned by artists: the uniform seating has been transformed into individual, idiosyncratic, one-of-a-kind pieces – a visual and material echo of the programme’s sonic diversity.

Thursday, 29 October, from 7 pm
“Beams & Bumps. Social hub with concerts and DJ sets”
with Margaux Gazur (live at 8.30 pm) and n9oc (DJ)

Margaux Gazur is a sound artist, composer and multi-instrumentalist. She explores her surroundings and her memories through sound, using acoustic instruments, everyday objects and field recordings to create multi-layered compositions. She operates far beyond genre classifications and draws inspiration from musique concrète, classical music, experimental jazz and much more. She also works on multidisciplinary projects and creates soundscapes for films and art installations.
In her current project, ‘Ngũ Hành Sonic Experiment’, she musically explores the Vietnamese concept of the five elements – water, earth, metal, wood and fire – and their influence on our shared planetary existence. Following her release ‘Blurred Memories’ on Smallville Records in 2025, the LP ‘Over There’ is due to be released this autumn on the Music From Memory label.
The evening will feature n9oc. She is a DJ and producer who has been active in Frankfurt’s electronic music scene for many years. In her DJ sets, she combines organic sound structures with synthetic textures, moving between experimental approaches and club-oriented styles.

Admission: 5 euros

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