Decolonising the Art Museum: A Critical Framework for Reconceptualising Nigerian Museum Practice

The decolonisation of art museums has become a global imperative, yet the specific challenges and opportunities of applying decolonial principles to Nigerian museums, which carry their own complex histories of colonial collection, postcolonial institutional development, and contemporary community relations, require an original context-sensitive theoretical framework. This study develops a critical framework for decolonising Nigerian art museum practice and tests it through empirical engagement with four case study institutions: the National Museum Lagos, the National Gallery of Art Abuja, the Esie Museum in Kwara State, and the Ife Museum in Osun State. The theoretical contribution is a model of museum decolonisation that operates across four dimensions: collection and repatriation, interpretive authority, community co-curation, and institutional governance, tailoring each dimension to the specific postcolonial institutional context of Nigerian museums. The empirical component employs qualitative methods including ethnographic observation of museum spaces and practices, in-depth interviews with 40 museum professionals, 30 community representatives from the cultural communities whose heritage is held in the institutions, and 80 general visitors. Document analysis of collection policies, exhibition texts, and institutional histories provides additional evidence. The theoretical framework draws on decolonial theory, new museology, the heritage ethics literature, and African museum studies. An original contribution is the framework's attention to intra-Nigerian decolonisation dynamics, recognising that the relationship between ethnically diverse Nigerian communities and national museums raises decolonisation questions distinct from the international repatriation discourse. Findings contribute to museum studies, cultural heritage policy, and decolonial theory. Keywords: museum decolonisation, Nigerian museums, heritage policy, community curation, postcolonial