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The world's first digital repatriation of stolen art

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A wonderful moment from the Renaissance-21 Festival on 18 October at art’otel London Hoxton.

Bringing together inspiring people, fresh perspectives, and a shared passion for art and culture.

@teodordore @chidi.co @looty.art @viktoriya_pakhomova6

This is where the new Renaissance begins.

Ph: @anastasia_hasparian

#renaissance21 #artotel #looty #london #friez

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The Renaissance-21 Festival has officially wrapped up, and there’s still so much to share!

On October 18, we gathered at @artotellondonhoxton an official Frieze partner, for “The Next Renaissance: Reimagining Heritage in Contemporary Arts”, a dynamic panel exploring how history and heritage are shaping the future of 21st-century culture.

A huge thank you to our brilliant speakers Chidi Nwaubani, Alexandra Dolgosheina, and Teodor Doré, and to our wonderful moderator Nour Saleh, for an insightful discussion on the future of global art, cultural heritage, and contemporary creativity.

The conversation was followed by a guided tour of “Mbari Memorial,” an exhibition by Chidi Nwaubani, offering a fascinating continuation of the ideas explored during the panel.

Thank you to everyone who joined us and contributed to such an inspiring afternoon of art, ideas, and meaningful conversations!

Festival partner @azreal_estate @alisa_zotimova

@teodordore @chidi.co @dlgsheina @noursalehs @slice.of.alicelife @viktoriya_pakhomova6

Ph: @anastasia_hasparian

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On view at 601Artspace: LOOTY , “The Other Museum,” 2022. Mixed media installation with video, AR, and 3D printed sculpture. Dimensions variable.

The “heist” is both a title and a strategy to question Occidental notions of the role of institutions in preserving and re-presenting the objects that anchor shared global narratives and design collective memory. The heist acts as a leak in the sense that it liberates both the object and the information that the object projects from the secure vault of the museum, even if only temporarily in our imaginations. LOOTY’s mission is to digitally repatriate looted artifacts and showcase them in an immersive and accessible environment in order to redefine their stories.
—Roxana Fabius @roxana_fabius

“The Other Museum” by LOOTY is part of 601Artspace’s current exhibition 𝑳𝒆𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑪𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔, on view through November 22. Gallery hours: Thursday-Sunday, 1-6pm.

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Creating digital sculptures with Chidirim Nwaubani @chidi.co and his Mbari Memorial installation.

His solo exhibition Notice of Reclamation presented by @doylewham is at the art'otel in Shoreditch until Sunday 25th October.

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Agency over one’s own history is at the core of “The Heist” by The LOOTY Collective @looty.art, an artist-created institution dedicated to the digital repatriation of looted cultural artifacts. Using blockchain technology, augmented reality, 3D scanning, and NFTs, LOOTY creates a hybrid physical-digital museum experience. The project aims to restore appropriated and displaced artifacts to their rightful places—both geographically and within global cultural consciousness—while also providing educational resources regarding heritage preservation and the historical injustices of colonialism.

—Roxana Fabius @roxana_fabius

By scanning the QR code, viewers trigger an animation on their phones and see the commemorative head of the Oba (King)–looted by the British during the 1897 Benin Expedition–via augmented reality.

LOOTY’s installation is currently on view at 601Artspace as part of 𝑳𝒆𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑪𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔. Visit the gallery Thursday-Sunday, 1-6pm. The exhibition is on view through November 22.

Images: LOOTY , “The Other Museum,” 2022. Mixed media installation with video, AR, and 3D printed sculpture. Dimensions variable. Photo by @flaneurshan.studio.

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Generating new sculptures with @chidi.co’s incredible installation Mbari Memorial.

Come see his first solo show, Notice of Reclamation, at the art’otel London Hoxton - open daily until Sunday 25th October! Presented by @doylewham and featuring @looty.art

#artinstallation #doylewham #looty #artotel #friezeweek

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Chidirim Nwaubani & LOOTY’s exhibition NOTICE OF RECLAMATION, presented by Doyle Wham, is now open at the art’otel London Hoxton until the 25th of October.

Founded by Nwaubani in 2021, the LOOTY collective uses innovative art and technology to reclaim stolen artworks, revive cultural heritage and transform narratives about cultural ownership. In 2023, LOOTY used archaeological LiDAR scanning technology to “steal back” the Rosetta Stone from the British Museum. In collaboration with Egyptologist Monica Hanna, they returned the stone to its place of origin, Rashid, using location-based AR technology.

Nwaubani’s latest project, Mbari Memorial, is at the centre of the exhibition. The installation works through collective participation: touch the Ogene sculptures (named after the Nigerian metal gong) and make contact with each other to activate the generation of new digital sculptures. Through this process, Nwaubani is reactivating the spirit of Mbari, a Nigerian Igbo practice of collective creation that was wiped out as a consequence of colonial suppression.

Until the late 1960s, in times of need, communities would come together to build Mbari houses: sacred and artistic spaces dedicated to the earth goddess Ala. The sound of the Ogene would summon people to create the Mbari. Today, the only physical traces of Mbari houses are ethnographic photographs and objects held in Western museums. However, the practice of Mbari is approached by Nwaubani not as a lost “artefact” to be recovered and preserved, but as a methodology of collective making to be continued.

Presented on bottle crates, associated with the visual culture of informal markets and economies, Nwaubani’s Ogene sculptures challenge the museum’s mandate of distance: touch is not prohibited but required, and meaning emerges not from contemplation but from participation.

📅 12 - 25 October 2026
📍art’otel London Hoxton, 1-3 Rivington Street, EC2A 3DT
🎟️ Free

#FLOLondon #FLOArts #DoyleWham #ChidirimNwaubani #LOOTY

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Final call for tickets to our panel discussion at @artotellondonhoxton this Thursday, 15th October!

We’re really looking forward to welcoming you all, chatting through the exhibition with artist @chidi.co and bringing together our incredible panellists @rubywight (Nothing), @benghayes (@unknown.works) and Sami Hayes (@shai.space) for a conversation exploring where ideas begin, the role of creativity and how our relationships with the past can shape the ways we imagine the future.

Looking forward to seeing you all at art’otel from 6pm!

With thanks to @itsonly__thebeginning and @doylewham for the support.

Last few tickets in bio(s) ❤️

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Historically, the Ogene was the primary tool of the village town crier. Because its distinct tones can mimic the tonal qualities of the Igbo language, it was used to broadcast news, summon the community, or act as an early-warning security alarm.

These sculptures draw homage on the old and the new. Ogene MIDI is a modern, interactive digital art installation bridging the past and present.

This Installation will be presented during Frieze Art Week, "Notice of reclamation" features Award-winning work from the Investec Cape Town Art Fair (Tomorrows/Today Prize, 2026), pieces exhibited at the Venice Biennale, and material from the ABC documentary Stuff the British Stole: The Rosetta Code.
📍 art'otel London Hoxton
🗓 12–17 October 2026 Historically, the Ogene was the primary tool of the village town crier. Because its distinct tones can mimic the tonal qualities of the Igbo language, it was used to broadcast news, summon the community, or act as an early-warning security alarm.

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You’re invited.

On October 15th, The Beginning and Chidi Nwaubani ask: Where Does an Idea Begin?

A conversation on the occasion of the artist’s solo show during Frieze London 2026 with Ruby Wight, Sami Hayes, and Ben Hayes.

Supported by Raggamuffin Curation.
 RSVP via the link in bio.

The Future Awaits Your Return.

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THE NEXT RENAISSANCE

This Frieze Week, Renaissance-21 comes to art’otel London Hoxton for a conversation on heritage, contemporary culture and the future of artistic creation.

Exploring how cultural memory can become a living source for contemporary art — and how heritage continues to shape new artistic voices today.

With
Chidi Nwaubani — @chidi.co
Alexandra Dolgosheina — @dlgsheina
Teodor Doré — @teodordore

Moderated by
Nour Saleh — @noursalehs

Producers @slice.of.alicelife @viktoriya_pakhomova6

The conversation takes place alongside Chidi Nwaubani’s Mbari Memorial: What Cannot Be Returned, Must Be Reconceived, presented at art’otel London Hoxton during Frieze Week.

Inspired by the Igbo tradition of Mbari, the award-winning project brings together sculpture, digital environments and interactive technology to explore cultural memory, restitution and collective creation.

Following the panel, Chidi will personally lead guests through the exhibition, revealing the ideas, technologies and cultural histories behind the work.

18 October 2026, 2 PM
art’otel London Hoxton
Frieze Week London

Part of Renaissance-21 Festival 2026.

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SAVE THE DATE: Notice of Reclamation, Chidi Nwaubani’s (@looty.art )first solo exhibition, presented at art’otel London Hoxton during Frieze Art Week by @doylewham gallery
🕕Opening: 6:00 pm | 12 October 2026
📅 12 - 25 October 2026
📍art’otel London Hoxton, London, UK
The exhibition offers a comprehensive look at recent practice across digital reclamation and critical museology, bringing together Chidi Nwaubani’s award-winning work from the Cape Town Art Fair, the Venice Biennale, and recent ABC documentary The Rosetta Code. It also debuts Mbari Memorial an interactive installation that turns the gallery into a portal where visitors become co-creators. Touch the conductive ogene sculptures together to generate and create a unique, unrestricted 3D scuplture.
Tap the link in our bio to RSVP for opening week events and for more information.

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#LOOTY #DoyleWham #FriezeArtWeek #ContemporaryArt #DigitalReclamation

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