Musa Heritage Gallery turns Five!

The 18th December is a symbolic day for Musa Heritage Gallery. On this day in 1996 the Musa Heritage Gallery opened its doors for the first time to the general public. On this day in 2001 the museum clocked five years of  her existence.

Peter Musa, Director of the Musa Heritage Gallery reflects at the first five years of the museum

It is amazing that time flies so swift. I cannot believe that it is already five years since Musa Heritage Gallery was erected. The experience has been worthwhile and I am really glad to be involved in the development of this arts and cultural institution.

I am glad to be a contributor to the preservation of the Musa family's artistic heritage, I am equally happy to be involved in the preservation of the artistic heritage of Cameroon's western grassfields and I am also very pleased to be associated with the preservation of our nation's artistic heritage. I  am filled with joy that my dad's dream of setting up a museum were realised though dad, Daniel and my brothers, Solomon and John were not able to live to see this happen. I am however inspired that my mother, Pauline did contribute positively in the setting up of the museum and has continued to play a very key role in sustaining

the institution.

The five years just past have been those of great challenges and I am happy that Musa Heritage Gallery was able to stand up to this difficult task of creating an identity for herself as an artistic and cultural instititution. The museum received the following accreditations from state authorities inCameroon which went further to boost the image of Musa Heritage Gallery as a recognised artistic and cultural institution:

Acknowledgement of Receipt No. E26/SCAB/SCAS/63/58 for the Declaration of an Association by name Musa Heritage Gallery (Mus'Art Gallery) issued by the Prefect of Bui Division on the 1st September 1997 in conformity with Law No. 90/053 of 19th December 1990 relating to Freedom of Association.

Recognition of Cultural NGO Registration No. C.G/03/M5 issued on behalf of the Provincial Delegate for Culture for the North West Province by delegation, the Provincial Chief of Service Patrimony, Cultural and Artistic Promotion on the 5th October 1999.

Certificate of Honour/Recognition for the museum's due recognition and its active role in the promotion of Cameroon's Cultural Heritage as a preservator of cultural heritage issued by the Provincial Delegate of Culture for the North West on the 10th  December 1999.

Musa Heritage Gallery which was initially set up in order to preserve the artistic heritage of the Musa family over the years has evolved into a regional arts and crafts museum with a primary focus on the arts and crafts of Cameroon's western grassfields which is made up of the North Westand West Provinces. Musa Heritage Gallery is interested in contemporary art and craft originating from this region. The museum DOES NOT collect ancestral or ritual art. This type of artwork better fits our Palace Museums.

We seek to expose the creativity of the people of this region as it was yesterday, today and tommorrow and for this reason our collection covers the last three decades of the just ended 20th century right up to the present day.  The people of  the museum's region of focus greatly contributed toCameroon's artistic development being highly talented artists and craftsmen whose works merit preservation. Apart from the many pieces created by the Musa family, the collection is being increased gradually with art and craft objects from other parts of the North West Province.  We still have much to accomplish but we need funds to do this. With the availability of funds we are committed  to having a collection which is representative of our entire region of focus.

Today globalisation is taking hold of every human endeavour and whatever we do the challenges are growing enormously. With the emergence of the internet for example there is greater competition and Musa Heritage Gallery is determined not to be left out of this new phenomenon. We need to work very hard to expose our institution to our local community, our countrymen and to the global community. We are committed to attract friends, collaborators, partners and to join networks of institutions with similar interests. We need to attract tourists to the Musa Heritage Gallery, to Kumbo and its neighbourhoods, to our region and our country. We have a role to play in promoting cultural tourism, cultural education and cultural activities. We have therefore been able to set up our internet site at www.btinternet.com/~mulamba thanks to our friend and adviser Dr. Ian Fowler of the Oxford Brooks University in the UK. We are extremely grateful for his committment to the website project, his sacrifice, creativity and time in revising/updating the web pages whenever necessary. With time our joint efforts shall surely yield fruits.

We also started working towards setting up an Arts, Culture and Development Information Centre as the resource arm of the museum. Presently we are subscribers to over 70 different journals on Arts, Culture and Development from all over the world and also a repository of arts and culture information . We intend to have these publications put at the disposal of the museum's visitors as well as to members of the public in our Resource Centre. I am unable to mention a list of all the organisations that have sent us publications over these early years of our existence. We are however very grateful for all the materials we have received and continue to receive. All these publications have been very useful to us in our everyday work. These organisations listed below deserve special thanks for the books donated to Musa Heritage Gallery over the years, the Nordic Africa Institute, Pro Helvetia and the Australia Council.

Finally, another initiative which I find very challenging is the Musa Heritage Gallery Music Library which we have embarked upon. Our plan is to establish a music library for Cameroon's folk and contemporary music as well as music from other countries. The music library is expected to be a global music information source were music lovers, musicians, researchers in Cameroon can easily gain access to music information.  We hope that not very long from now what seems still  to be in its infancy shall come to be realised. Let me thank Patricia Adkins Chiti President of the Foundation Patricia Adkins Chiti: Donne in Musica for launching an appeal on our behalf to associates of the foundation for donations of musical scores and CDs for the Musa Heritage Gallery Music Library. We hope that her appeal materialises and look forward to further collaborations with her and other actors in both our national and international musical scene.

These first five years of Musa Heritage Gallery were attained thanks to the following:

Bui Administrative Authorities, North West Provincial Delegation for Culture, Municipal Authorities Kumbo Urban Council. The Canada Conference for the Arts (CCA), Ottawa, Canada and The World Bank Institute (WBI) for a Grant that enabled the Director to travel to Santorini, Greece in September 2000. (see reunions, meetings or conferences). The French Branch of the International Association of Music Libraries (AIBM), Paris, France and The French Foreign Office for a Grant that enabled the Director to travel to Perigueux, France in July 2001. (see reunions, meetings or conferences).

Priority Development Areas for Musa Heritage Gallery:

Renovation of the Musa Heritage Gallery Building:                                                                                   General Repairs and Painting, Providing Security Installations,
A Fence, Lighting Installations, Stands/Shelvings

Increase in Collection: Museum Purchases

Cataloging of the Musa Heritage Gallery Collection

Establishment of the Museum's Resource Centre

Establishment of a Conservation or Treatment Room for the Objects

Establishment of a Workshop for the Museum

Establishment of a Music Library

Establishment of a Gallery for Children's Art/Craft

Internet Accessessibility for the Museum

Over the years we participated in the following reunions, meetings or conferences:

1st National Training Seminar on the Management of Cameroon's Museums, National Museum, Yaounde 29th June to1st July 1999.

International Council of Museums (ICOM) National Committee for Cameroon Annual General Assembly, National Museum, Yaounde 13th May 2001.

National Celebrations to mark the 23rd International Museum Day, National Museum, Yaounde 13th May 2001.

International Conference on the Artist, Culture & Globalisation, Santorini, Greece 24th to 26th September 2000.

Founding Meeting of the International Network for Cultural Diversity (INCD), Santorini, Greece 26th September 2000.

19th General Assembly and 50th Anniversary Celebrations of the International Association of Music Libraries, Archives and Documentation Centres (IAML) 8th to the 13th August 2001 Perigueux, France.

VIPs who during these first five years visited Musa Heritage Gallery:

Prof. Verkijika  Fanso, Director of Cultural Patrimony, Ministry of Culture, Yaounde in 1997

Nji Mouliom Ali, Senior Divisional Officer (SDO) for Bui Division in 2000

John B.Ndeh, Director General, North West Development Authority in 2000

Chief Ayuk Ita Erem Emmanuel, North West Provincial Delegate for Culture and a delegation of his close collaborators in 2000

Dr. Solomon Nfor Gwei, Chairman, National Human Rights Commission, Yaounde in 2001

Dr. Kini Yen Kinni, Curator/Director, Afhemi Museum, Yaounde in 2001

Dr. Raymond Asombang, Director of Cultural Patrimony, Ministry of Culture, Yaounde in 2001

Three Foreign Scholars also visited the Musa Heritage Gallery during the course of these years:

Prof. Mitzi Goheen, Amherst College, USA in 1997

Prof. Milton Krieger, USA in 1998

Prof. Ian Fowler, Oxford Brooks Universiy, UK in 1999, 2000, 2001

Musa Heritage Gallery achieved Membership into the following Associations/Networks

Arts Council of the African Studies Association (ACASA) in 1997

Web Art Garden (WAG) in 1998

International Association of Music, Libraries, Archives and Documentation Centres (IAML) in 1999

International Network for Cultural Diversity (INCD) in 2000

Culturelink Network in 2000

To our numerous friends, collaborators and to the institutions that we hold membership thank you for all that we have been able to achieve this far. We count on you. By working with us you have demonstrated your respect for Cultural Diversity and together are positively contributing towards the building up of an indegenous African Cultural Heritage & Cultural Service Institution. Thank you for your continued friendship, cooperation and partnership with the Musa Heritage Gallery. To all of you who visited Musa Heritage Gallery also accept our thanks for your patronage. Our doors are always open and as a promise we shall continue to improve upon our services with you, Our Visitors in mind! Although we had a very low record of  visitors during these first years of our existence we anticipate a tremendous increase in visitor numbers over the coming years.

My vision for the future is full of great enthusiasism. I know that we have great challenges ahead but I remain optimistic and see a  well structured Musa Heritage Gallery in the years to come centred on three major areas:

Arts and Crafts (Museum)

Arts and Culture (Library)

Music (Library & Sound Archive)