The donation is now part of permanent exhibitions at the national museum for Chinese to learn about African art. While Xie collected sculptures and donated them to his motherland, the European museums are planning to return African sculptures looted during the colonial era. Some British museums have "loaned" artifacts to museums in Nigeria instead of returning them.

"African sculptures can offer another perspective in understanding world history as well as art history," says Chihying, adding that it's the African sculptures that inspired Western masters such as Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso.

Chiyhing went to Berlin University of the Arts in 2010 for his master's degree in fine arts. He says as a member of a generation that grew up in the era of globalization, like some of his peers in China, he often focuses on issues facing the world in his works.

"Art has no nationality," he says.

For the past few years, Chiyhing's works have mainly focused on Africa. Earlier this year, he was invited to take part in a film festival in Nigeria with his video works.

Chihying says Western artists and scholars have done research on their own art, as well as African and Asian art, but these two branches are still marginalized compared with Western art.

He hopes to bring an Asian perspective to African Art, he says.

If you go

10 am-7 pm, through Oct 28. Ullens Center for Contemporary Art, 4 Jiuxianqiao Road, Chaoyang district, Beijing. 010-57800200.