BRONZE FACES
Soho, London. Childhood friends Timi, Sango, and Gbonka reunite on the eve of the British Museum’s historic purchase of the works of Timi’s father, the seminal Nigerian artist Adewale Balogun. Timi has been invited as a ‘guest of honor,’ but what the Museum is heralding as a triumphant acquisition, the trio see as nothing short of brazen cultural theft. Emboldened by a night of drinking and shared outrage, they concoct a bold schemeĀ to steal back the artwork themselves!
But when they come into possession of a document called ‘the Register,’ outlining dozens of colonial-era stolen artifacts, their sights turn even higher to the Benin Bronzes – the British Museum’s cache of nearly 1,500 works of art stolen from the Kingdom of Benin. Celebrated authors Shobo & Shof Coker (New Masters) draw from their Nigerian heritage for the heist of a lifetime, joined by acclaimed artist Alexandre Tefenkgi (Once Upon a Time at the End of the World, The Good Asian). Prepare for a story that’s at once an exhilarating adventure and simultaneously a breathtaking descent into mythology, history, and the horrors of colonialism, perfect for celebrating the start Black History Month.