Alistair Hardaker
Image: A section of the artwork commissioned to mark relationship with Manhyia Palace Museum
Unity sculpture made in sections by Asante Royal Goldsmith and British-Ghanaian designer as part of Renewable Cultural Partnership.
The V&A has unveiled a new artwork commissioned to mark the next stage in the Renewable Cultural Partnership between the V&A and the Manhyia Palace Museum in Kumasi, the home of the Asante king. The sculpture, titled Unity, is a collaboration between the Asante Royal Goldsmith Nana Poku Amponsah Dwumfour and British-Ghanaian designer Emefa Cole and is on display in the Silver Galleries at V&A South Kensington.
The sculpture was made in sections by Emefa and Nana in London and Kumasi, before they worked on it together in the Asante royal workshop in April 2025. The commission builds on the pair’s pre-existing collaboration to promote the sophisticated techniques of historic Asante goldsmithing and fuse it with contemporary making. A London-based jewellery designer previously Curator of Jewellery (Diaspora) at the V&A, Emefa is the first woman to be apprenticed to the Asante royal goldsmith.
The commission is part of a significant cultural partnership, which saw Asante gold regalia from the V&A collection displayed in Ghana for the first time in 150 years, as part of a long-term renewable loan agreement.
The V&A holds a small but significant collection of Asante royal regalia, acquired in 1874 from items looted by British troops who raided Kumasi during the third of the so-called Anglo-Asante Wars. For the Asante, the gold regalia contains the spirits of former kings and carries meaning deeply embedded in Asante identity.
A Renewable Cultural Partnership was established in 2023 following an official visit to London by the Asantehene (King of Asante) Otumfuo Osei Tutu II at which time he met with the leadership of the V&A and the British Museum. The following year, all 17 items of Asante golden regalia in the V&A along with 16 from the British Museum went on show in Kumasi for the first time in 150 years. The gold was greeted personally by the King who opened the exhibition, titled Homecoming.
The commission continues the V&A’s Renewable Cultural Partnership with the Manhyia Palace Museum, acknowledging the history of conflict that brought both institutions together whilst pointing to a future based on cooperation and friendship. The sculpture was made with support from the V&A Americas Foundation.
