In this illustrated lecture, Dr Omar Kholeif, Professor of Global Art Theory and Practice at the Glasgow School of Art and Convenor of the Master’s in Curatorial Practice (Contemporary Art) with the University of Glasgow, situates their experience within the broader practice of building collections and exhibitions of the African and Asian diaspora. Programmed to coincide with Monira Al Qadiri’s exhibition at Arken Art Museum, the Egyptian-born, British author, curator, artist and museum director, argues for a manifesto towards a practice of ‘civic collecting’—a form of ‘world building’ that enables an imaginative space of narration for diasporic voices.

Photo: Installation View Lubaina Himid, How Do You Spell Change Freedom, Kangas 2018. Courtesy of Sharjah Art Foundation