Noemie Arazi is a trained archaeologist and holds a PhD in African Archaeology from University College London (UK). Her practice usually combines archaeological investigations with the collection of oral histories, memories and archival research. For many years she has also worked on cultural heritage preservation in the infrastructure and mining sector. This has given her insight into the mechanisms of infrastructure and mining enclaves in Central Africa and their impact on resident communities and cultural landscapes.
Noemie’s diverse experiences prompted her to seek a broader narrative concerning the impact of the past on present-day societies. She is particularly interested in the cross-fertilization of art, archaeology and cultural heritage, which led her to direct Kasongo (Im)Material, her first documentary film, co-directed with Georges Senga.
She currently works at the Africa Museum on the Congo-Arab Heritage in Historical Narratives project.
During her residency Noemie Arazi will be collaborating with Moussem on an exhibition, provisionally titled Congo-Arab, based on her long-term research in the eastern Congo. It will critically examine the events that unfolded during the second half of the 19th century, when eastern Congo became entangled in territorial conquest, predatory extraction and the global trade in natural resources, led by Swahili and Arab traders from the Indian Ocean coast and taken over by the agents of the Congo Free State shortly afterwards.
The collected works, drawn from scientific and artistic research, will explore the entangled temporalities and accumulated meanings of what persists and survives in the present from a past deeply affected by coloniality. As an exploration into alternative heritage practices, Congo-Arab will bring into focus polyphonic epistemologies, narration and display by researchers, artists and students from the DRC and Belgium.
