BOOM! Studios announced the upcoming release of Bronze Faces by Shobo, Shoff, and Alexandre Tefenkgi, which draws from Nigerian heritage for a big heist tale.
Soho, London. Estranged childhood friends Timi, Sango, and Gbonka reunite on the eve of the British Museum’s historic purchase of the works of Timi’s father. Timi has been invited as a “guest of honor,” but what the Museum is heralding as a triumphant acquisition, the trio see as nothing short of brazen cultural theft.
Emboldened by a night of drinking and shared outrage, the friends concoct a scheme to steal back the seminal artwork themselves!
But when the trio find themselves in possession of “The Register,” a document outlining dozens of colonial-era stolen artifacts, their sights turn even higher to the Benin Bronzes–the British Museum’s cache of nearly 1,500 works of stolen art from the Kingdom of Benin…
“Bronze Faces is our bold answer to the question, ‘What if we took our heritage back by any means necessary?’ We’ve crafted a story that’s part heist, part homecoming, and part myth. I can’t wait for readers to dive into the action with us,” said series co-creator Shobo in a press release from BOOM! Studios.
“Bronze Faces is an idea we all may have had at some point standing in some of the world’s most prominent museums. ‘What happens if I just took that priceless sculpture home with me back to Nigeria? While jamming to afrobeat, preferably Fela, wearing a bronze leopard mask, flipping the bird, and wearing a stylish getaway outfit that you can see from space’… Right?!” said series co-creator Shof in the same press release..
“The creation process for Bronze Faces is completely different than what I’ve ever done so far,” said series artist Alexandre Tefenkgi. “The creative team is composed as if we were crafting an animated feature, which is new and thrilling for me. So much care, research and attention to details are being put into this work, it’s just mad. I couldn’t NOT be a part of this, even if the challenge of drawing these issues is definitely going to make me sweat this winter!”
Bronze Faces #1 is scheduled to arrive on February 5, 2025.
