Olugbile Holloway recognized in TIME100 Art list

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has congratulated Olugbile Holloway, Director-General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), following his inclusion in the inaugural TIME100 Art list. The recognition highlights Holloway’s role in shaping the future of art and his efforts to recover Nigeria’s cultural treasures.

Since his appointment in March 2024, Holloway has worked to establish frameworks for the retrieval, conservation, and exhibition of returned Benin artefacts. Under his leadership, the NCMM secured the return of 119 Benin Bronzes from the Netherlands and the legal transfer of 116 pieces from the University of Cambridge. Additionally, 18 Benin Bronzes and four Ikom monoliths were recently returned from Switzerland.

Holloway has also overseen the launch of Nigeria’s first digital museum of antiquities, featuring 3D scans of over 200 objects from the National Museum in Lagos. President Tinubu commended the renovation of the Lagos museum and described the repatriation of cultural property as an act of historical justice and a restoration of dignity for the affected communities.