“I have always had a tremendous interest [in art] however, knowing your strengths and weaknesses is very important. It occurred to me that I wouldn’t be hugely successful as a studio artist and so I concentrated on being an art historian.”

— Dr. Ndubuisi C. Ezeluomba

The African Art collection at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts began 45 years ago with a single object — a mask from the Kuba kingdom in central Congo.

Even though the exhibit has grown exponentially since then, the museum’s new curator said his focus will be on leading the VMFA’s efforts to research the history of its collection and return works stolen or looted during the colonial era.

“My feet have just hit the ground and I can’t wait to start running,” Dr. Ndubuisi C. “Endy” Ezeluomba said in a recent phone interview about his May appointment as curator of African Art at the VMFA.

In announcing his hiring, VMFA specifically mentioned its heightened efforts to identify stolen or looted art and return it. As an example, Dr. Ezeluomba cited the British raid on Benin in 1897 in which the royal treasury was confiscated and many items later were sold at auction in London.

A growing legion of art historians, intellectuals, scholars, activists and the public is demanding the return of stolen African art and artifacts. Volumes of articles, studies, videos and other media further address the issue.

Felwine Sarr, considered a leader in the call for African art restitution, is Duke University’s Anne-Marie Bryan Chair in French and Francophone Studies. Mr. Sarr is well-known for his 2018 groundbreaking report “The Restitution of African Cultural Heritage: Toward a New Relational Ethics.”

In his report, Mr. Sarr recalls that in 1978, Amadou-Mahtar M’Bow, then the director of UNESCO, pleaded for a rebalancing of global cultural heritage between the northern and the southern hemispheres.

The return of an irreplaceable cultural heritage to those who created it, M’Bow noted, is necessary because “The people who have been victims of this plunder, sometimes for hundreds of years, have not only been despoiled of irreplaceable masterpieces, but also robbed of a memory which would doubtless have helped them to greater self-knowledge and would certainly have helped others understand them better.”

It is Dr. Ezeluomba’s hope that being a curator at a museum with a large and prestigious African art collection that is dedicated to art reparations will encourage or stimulate more conversation about the idea of restitution.

VMFA acquired its first work by an African-American artist in 1944 and has built the collection since. In 2015, it launched an initiative to significantly deepen their holdings of African, African-American and African Diasporic artists. The museum’s current collection includes ceramics, figures, masks, paintings, photographs, ritual objects and textiles from more than 100 cultures throughout the continent.

“We are delighted to have Endy rejoining the curatorial team at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts,” said Alex Nyerges, VMFA’s Director and CEO. “He will advance the vision for the museum’s renowned African art collection, an invaluable resource for Virgin- ians who wish to learn more about African art and culture.”

History has led Dr. Ezeluomba to be vocal in advocating for the repatriation of African art and cultural objects. He says his role in leading VMFA’s efforts to research the history of its collection and return works stolen or looted during the colonial era will provide “the kind of pedestal that is needed to propagate that idea.”

Dr. Ezeluomba isn’t a stranger to VMFA. Between 2016 and 2018, the internationally recognized curator and scholar was the Andrew W. Mellon Research Specialist at the museum.

In that position he helped analyze the materials and construction of works in the museum’s African art collection. That research helps inform curators and conservationists on the imperative understanding of handling and preserving African art.

When that grant project ended, he moved on to the New Orleans Museum of Art, where he was curator of African Art for Françoise Billion Richardson. While there, he exhibited “Ancestors in Stone, Body Adornment in African Art.” He also co-curated an upcoming exhibition: “Black Orpheus: Jacob Lawrence and the Mbari Club.”

It is this passion for art and historical knowledge that Dr. Ezeluomba plans to bring into the galleries and exhibits he will design at VMFA. He wants them to reflect the continuum from the art and artists of the past to those of modern times.

“At least into the mid-20th century, African art was mainly displayed along geographic lines, creating a sharp demarcation across the different countries and cultures,” Dr. Ezeluomba said. “The way exhibits are conceived now is by thematization. Objects are selected along them and this helps to show more of the unity of the continent.”

For example, he said some of the items may serve as part of a ritual or ceremony. Originally from Benin City, located in southern Nigeria, Dr. Ezeluomba first trained in carving while earning his bachelor’s degree in Fine & Applied Arts from the University of Benin in Nigeria. While he still creates art, he says his focus shifted when receiving his master’s degree in African Studies/Art History from Ibadan in Nigeria.

Dr. Ezeluomba later earned his doctorate in visual culture/ art history from the University of Wales, and a doctorate in art history from the University of Florida, Gainesville.

“I have always had a tremendous interest [in art] however, knowing your strengths and weaknesses is very important,” Dr. Ezeluomba said. “It occurred to me that I wouldn’t be hugely successful as a studio artist and so I concentrated on being an art historian.

Dr. Ezeluomba says simple things such as maps and photo- graphs in galleries, as well as exhibits that present both modern and historical works provide substance and depth. Strategic collecting can allow complementing pieces to be shown together whenever possible — such as the costumes worn displayed alongside masks.

“If you have those pieces coming together, it is awe inspiring,” Dr. Ezeluomba said.

“It is something that makes visitors go, ‘Wow!’”

It’s that excitement that will fuel his efforts with VMFA’S $200 million expansion project announced in 2021 and slated for completion in 2027. The planned construction of a new 170,000-square-foot wing includes space for dedicated African Art galleries.

“That is where a lot of my ideas will come to bear. I want to come in with the designers and help to create a very African space.” Dr. Ezeluomba said.

“I want to be activating the space-making it lively and noisy with storytelling and poetry, artists and performers creating an audio-visual experience. I want people to see that African art is full of intrigue.”