Christopher Spring
Curator, Northeast, East and South Africa
Chris is responsible for the
Sainsbury African galleries, developing the collections of
contemporary African art and the collections from eastern and
southern Africa.
Department: Africa, Oceania and the
Americas
Telephone: +44 (0)20 73238064
Email: cspring @ thebritishmuseum.ac.uk
Chris has an MA from Oxford University and is
a Helen Wilson scholar from Heatherley’s School of Fine Art,
London. His current research explores the history, development and
social significance of KANGA and other printed textiles of eastern
and southern Africa and he is in the middle of a fieldwork-based
project, supported by the Townley group of the British Museum
Friends on the subject.
His interests build upon fieldwork in Egypt
and Tunisia researching living textile traditions and working with
contemporary artists such as Nja Mahdaoui, Khaled Ben Slimane and
Rachid Koraichi. The outcome of this was the acquisition of a major
collection of Tunisian textiles as well as outstanding
examples of work by these artists.
Chris Spring’s work on commissioning the Tree
of Life from Mozambican artists working on the Swords into
Ploughshares project in Mozambique was initiated when he purchased
Kester’s Throne of Weapons for the British Museum in 2002. This
sculpture has been on an extended tour of the UK as part of our
Partnership UK scheme; a book documenting the tour has been
published. This collaboration led in turn to working with
colleagues in three different museums in Mozambique as part of the
British Museum's Africa in Africa project.
Current British Museum projects
Previous British Museum projects
La Bouche
du Roi by Romuald Hazoumé. This remarkable artwork was
displayed in Room 35, March – May 2007, as part of the BM’s
response to the bicentenary of the abolition of the Atlantic Slave
Trade. It will then tour to various venues including Hull,
Liverpool, Bristol and Newcastle.
Textile refurbishment of the Sainsbury African Galleries,
followed by refurbishment of other sections
External fellowships/ honorary positions/ membership of professional bodies
Governor and curatorial adviser, the
Powell-Cotton Museum, Birchington
Governor, the Small Mansion Arts Centre, London
Publications
Most recent publications
C. Spring, 'La Bouche du Roi,' ReMus, 29 Spring (2007)
pp. 14-15
C. Spring, 'Africa ’05 at the
British Museum.' Journal of Museum Ethnography, 18 (2006)
pp. 157-65
C. Spring, 'Printed Cloth (Kanga)'
in Hazina: Traditions, Trade and Transitions in Eastern
Africa, with K. Lagat and J. Hudson (eds.),
(Nairobi, National Museums of Kenya, 2006) pp. 31-33
C. Spring, Kenyan Art: art from the
Ya-Africa and Hawa Artists of Nairobi (Catmose Gallery,
Oakham, 2006) (Foreword to exhibition catalogue)
C. Spring, 'Not Really Africa? Kanga and
Swahili Culture' in East African Contours, H. Arero and Z.
Kingdon (eds.), (London, Horniman Museum, 2005) pp. 73-84