The MFA Restores Proper Ownership Of Works By An Enslaved Artist

WBZ NewsRadio's Kyle Bray reports.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
On his work the poem Jar, Enslaved artist David Drake
wrote that he made it for cash, and now his
descendants are finally seeing some of it. The Museum of
Fine Arts has had the poem Jar and signed jar
on display for years, but now they've returned ownership to
his descendants. Victoria Reid is the Chair of Provenance at
the MFA and says this was a first of its
kind restitution case for them.

Speaker 2 (00:18):
Because the artist was enslaved and as such would not
have received any money for his creations and would have
had no agency in giving them away or disposing of them.

Speaker 1 (00:27):
The museum purchased the poem Jar from Drake's family and
the sign jar is on long term loan. Reid says
they were lucky to be able to track down the
true owners of the jars, because they can't do that
for other works by enslaved artists.

Speaker 2 (00:38):
There are other objects in the collection that we believe
to have been made by enslaved artists. We don't know
who they are anymore.

Speaker 1 (00:44):
From the MFA. Kyle Bray WBZ, Boston's News Radio