Curator Simon Njami discusses his exhibition 'NAFRICA–MASCHERE' at the Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte, which juxtaposes the fascist anthropological archives of Lidio Cipriani with contemporary artworks. The show utilizes the metaphor of the mask to explore the tension between how individuals are perceived and how they project themselves, specifically addressing the persistence of colonial logic in the modern world. By including artists from Africa, America, and Italy, Njami seeks to move beyond a binary 'colonizer vs. colonized' narrative toward a broader inquiry into human representation and power.
The exhibition is significant for its refusal to treat colonial history as a closed chapter, instead reactivating unsettling archives to highlight the continuity of racial hierarchies and nationalism in contemporary society. By reframing ethnographic objects and fascist records through a contemporary lens, Njami challenges the museum's role in maintaining colonial legacies. The project emphasizes the 'mask' as a tool for survival and a site of negotiation, forcing viewers to confront the unstable boundaries of identity and the enduring impact of Western anthropological violence.