Sustaining the Otherwise is conceived, initiated and curated by Amal Alhaag and Selene Wendt.  This multilocational research and artistic project reflects their ongoing research and curatorial practices and builds upon their previous collaboration in 2022 on Practicing Freedom, which they conceptualized and curated upon the invitation of Goethe-Institut, London. Collaborating with researchers,  artists and curators, as well as artist-led initiatives in Africa and its diasporas, they seek to make a meaningful contribution to the ongoing discourse  around restitution. The project offers a platform for critical engagement and ample breathing space for artistic practices to unfold organically, with the intention of stretching the concept of restitution beyond a discussion about museum practice and policy. The multilocational interdisciplinary program centers contemporary art practice and features residencies, gatherings, artist activations, publications and exhibitions, taking place over several years.

Sustaining the Otherwise is an opportunity to collectively rethink strategies and practicalities of restitution, to reclaim stories and histories, to reimagine what is possible, to resist and revolt against lingering colonial power structures in the present. We seek to collectively engage in the topic of restitution by focusing on artistic practices, everyday memory work and collaborative initiatives that are founded on the desire for radical transformation and a real commitment to creating change.

Selene Wendt is an independent curator, writer and researcher based in Oslo. Her ongoing curatorial focus is on decoloniality and socially engaged art practices, with emphasis on interdisciplinary projects situated at the intersection between contemporary art, music, and literature. 

Amal Alhaag is an Amsterdam-based independent curator, educator and researcher who develops ongoing experimental and collaborative research practice, public programs, and projects on global spatial politics, archives, colonialism, counter-culture, oral histories, and popular culture.