Now South Africa’s largest heritage repatriation organisation, the Tshwane-based Ifa Lethu foundation was launched officially in 2005, in a concerted effort to reacquire struggle and township art. Largely unvalued in the country itself, many works left its borders from the 1960s to 1980s after being bought by foreign diplomats, journalists and visitors, but are now recognised as an integral component of South African cultural heritage, as well as powerful testaments to historical experience and individual expression. The collection –...

Now South Africa’s largest heritage repatriation organisation, the Tshwane-based Ifa Lethu foundation was launched officially in 2005, in a concerted effort to reacquire struggle and township art. Largely unvalued in the country itself, many works left its borders from the 1960s to 1980s after being bought by foreign diplomats, journalists and visitors, but are now recognised as an integral component of South African cultural heritage, as well as powerful testaments to historical experience and individual expression. The collection – which now numbers over 300 artworks – has grown from the idiosyncratic donations of individuals from Australia to Holland, Germany to the USA, and ranges from the expressively-charged charcoal works of a now-famous artist like Dumile Feni, to those of artists for whom biographical information remains completely unknown (catalysing new and exciting research work for consultant curator Carol Brown, previous director of the DAG). 

Curating a collection of diverse quality, labyrinthine (and often unknown) provenance, as well as multiple media – painting, drawing, sculpture, prints, and wood carvings – is no small challenge, but Carol Brown presented a compelling selection in the recent exhibition ‘Coming Home’ at the Gallery Menier in Southwark, London (17-21 October) after its debut in Australia. A smaller number of works was then selected for exhibition (though not sale) alongside auction-house Bonham’s prestigious South African sale (22-27 Oct) in order to increase the foundation’s visibility. Last year, a series of international exhibitions was initiated for the collection, tracing a journey around the world in efforts to raise public awareness of the foundation’s mission, and often resulting in new and serendipitous donations en route. The question remains, however, as to where, in fact, the collection will be ‘Coming Home’ to, as it has yet to find a permanent exhibition venue in South Africa.