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Stained Metal explores the personal and global impact of the British Empire through the journey of a medal around the world, tracing connections between people, places and histories.  

In 2023, Inua Ellams was awarded an MBE and two years later posted his medal to four corners of the former British Empire with a letter inviting artists to respond. The medal then journeyed to Benin City, where Inua worked with a traditional bronze caster to create a new medal incorporating Benin’s cultural iconography and Nigeria’s history. 

The exhibition brings together these new artistic commissions with objects from Inua’s private collection and the collection Manchester Museum cares for, shining light on how identities are shaped by large historical forces. Presenting a range of voices and perspectives, Stained Metal asks visitors to engage with the complexities, contradictions and human experiences behind the objects on display, inviting curiosity, reflection and conversation. 

Join us for a thought-provoking and layered exhibition that contemplates the many ways the legacies of empire continue to resonate in the present.

Fuel and Manchester Museum present  

Stained Metal

Conceived by Inua Ellams  

Curated by Inua Ellams with Fuel and Manchester Museum  

Produced by Fuel and Manchester Museum 

With Residency Partner Museum of West African Art 

Creative Team: 

Lead Curator: Inua Ellams 

Commissioned artists: Wanjeri Gakuru and Wanini Kimemiah, Kenya; Akhil Katyal, Shripad Sinnakaar and Sachin Sreenath, India; Phillip Dwight Morgan, Lauren Marshall and Chiedza Pasipanodya, Canada; and Yashika Graham, Jamaica. 

Bronze caster: Phil Omodamwen 

Commissioned artworks: 

Kenya  

Wanjeri Gakuru – We’re Still Here

Wanini Kimemiah – we continue to continue

India 

Akhil Katyal - 1870 

Shripad Sinnakaar – On Dispossession of Caste & Ode to Mumbai 

Sachin Sreenath – Victoria Terminus

Canada 

Phillip Dwight Morgan with Lauren Marshall – Man and His Technologies 

Chiedza Pasipanodya – Untitled (Registry) #2

Jamaica 

Yashika Graham – Seeking Home