The exhibition “Africa Amongst Us” at the Benaki Museum (138 Pireos St.) is a pioneering and human-centered initiative that highlights the African diasporic community in Greece through objects, narratives, and artistic activities. It is part of the project “The Benaki Museum Collections and Contemporary Creation.” The exhibition was designed by, for, and together with more than thirty members of the Afro-diasporic community, in collaboration with the ANASA Cultural Center of African Art and Cultures. The curators are Sofia Chandaka, a social anthropologist and curator of the World Cultures Department at the Benaki Museum, and Michalis Afolayan, founder of ANASA.
Statues, Langanagana, Benaki Museum. Photo: Peny Zerva
Objects as Storytellers
The exhibition features items from the John Phillipson collection, mainly originating from Nigeria and Cameroon and dating back to the late 19th century. John Phillipson was a Greek-Canadian mining engineer and geologist, as well as a distinguished translator of Cavafy. Beyond being a polymath, he was a passionate collector. Starting in the 1960s, based in Kenya, he traveled across various African countries. He also lived in Cameroon and Mozambique and began assembling his collection in the 1990s. After his death, his wife, honoring his wish, donated the collection to the Benaki Museum to showcase African art in Phillipson’s homeland.
These objects entered the international market due to the growing influence of Christianity and Islam, as well as political events like the Nigerian Civil War (1967–1970). Communities began to recognize the commercial and artistic value of their creations and started selling them in large numbers. While most of the collected pieces were made for sale, the exhibition raises a key question: Can an artwork be considered authentic only if it’s tied to traditional or cultural use, or even when it’s made explicitly for the market? Rather than simply presenting the objects as art, the exhibition uses them as mediums through which the stories of people of African descent living in Greece can be heard. Through museum and archival materials, personal items, and narratives, the exhibition bridges cultural stories and identities.
John Phillipson’s personal items, Benaki Museum. Photo: Peny Zerva
People of the Diaspora at the Centre
The second part of the exhibition features a pop-up showcase of artists of African descent active in Greece, offering a vibrant platform for presenting contemporary African and Afro-Greek artistic expressions. The exhibit includes portraits of the artists alongside recordings of their voices as they recount their experiences growing up or living in Greece.
Portraits of African-Greek artists, Benaki Museum. Photo: Peny Zerva
The African Community’s Journey in Greek History
Through a timeline and corresponding photographs, visitors encounter the history of the community over the years and how it evolved in relation to political and other milestones both in and outside Greece. Notably, in the 1960s, Law 3275/1925 prevented immigration to Greece, while globally the first student associations were forming. After the dictatorship, in 1976, the first magazine of the Sudanese Students Union was published—handmade and in limited copies.
In the 1980s, student visas began to expire, and many people were left undocumented since the law did not provide for staying in the country post-studies. In 1988, the Association of Ethiopians in Attica was founded, which later evolved into the Ethiopian Community.
In the 1990s, more communities began to form. In 1992, the Pan-African Association of Greece was founded, becoming the first collective representative body of African communities after the earlier student association of West African students. In 1991, mass migration of refugees to Greece due to the fall of communist regimes led to a need for new legislation. In 1994, the General Confederation of Greek Workers (GSEE) supported migrant legalization. In 1995, trapped students pushed to convert their student visas into residence permits. Since migrant children couldn’t access nurseries, the Pan-African Association created its own. In 1996, the first anti-racism festival was held on Kolonos Hill, organized by Greeks with support from migrant associations. In 1997, the Migrants’ Hangout started in Exarchia, hosting migrant community meetings. That same year, the first attempt at legalizing foreigners began through Presidential Decrees that outlined procedures for registration and issuing temporary residence permits of limited duration.
In 2001, Law 2910 regarding entry and residence of foreigners in Greek territory, and acquisition of Greek citizenship through naturalization, marked the state’s first formal attempt to shape immigration policy within the EU’s framework. In 2003, Yvette Jarvis became the first African-American woman to hold public office in the Municipality of Athens. Still, migrants had no right to vote. In 2004, the Greek Nationality Code was ratified. In 2005, the United African Women’s Organization was founded, bringing the issue of birth certificates to the forefront for the first time.
Metoikos magazine, Benaki Museum. Photo: Peny Zerva
The first major victory for migrant communities came in 2010 with the passing of the Ragousis Law, which allowed migrants to participate in municipal elections and granted citizenship to migrant children born in Greece or who had attended a Greek school for at least six years. In 2011, the Migrant Integration Council was established in the Municipality of Athens under this law, representing the largest migrant communities in the city. In 2014, the anti-racism law was passed, criminalizing hate speech, and in 2015, a law was passed to ease access to Greek citizenship.
This timeline was created for the exhibition in collaboration with the Greek Forum of Migrants, aiming to depict the activity of the Afro-diasporic community in Greece from 1960 to today, as well as the trajectory of demands and struggles of the migrants and refugees who have lived here throughout these years. The goal was to highlight these communities’ participation in public life and cultural affairs.
Photos showing some milestones of African community history, Benaki Museum. Photo: Peny Zerva
Epilogue
This is an exhibition that deeply and uniquely moved me—unlike anything I’ve seen before. On one hand, it opens wide the doors to a culture that is striking and impressive, especially as revealed through its folk art. Through their artistic works, one gains a deeper understanding of African history and culture. On the other hand, it confronts you with the injustice, racism, and all the hardships that the Afro-diasporic community has endured over the years. And as their music plays in the background, you wonder how such a rich culture still has to fight for recognition. Nevertheless, this exhibition truly succeeds in bringing the public closer to the art, culture, and history of the African community in Greece. Don’t miss it.
Benaki Museum
138 Pireos St.
Africa Amongst Us
Until May 25, 2025
Until next time!!!
Design geek in Athens