Amarr Croskey Photos
Vibrant traditions and cultures of regions throughout the African diaspora were on display Saturday, June 22 at the Birmingham Museum of Art’s African Heritage Festival. The family-oriented festival honored African heritage through art, crafts, music, and dance and featured a powerful performance by Atlanta-based African drumming and dance group Giwayen Mata.
The group continues the rich tradition of African drumming and African dance and articulates traditional West African rhythms on djembe, sangban, kenkeni, dununba drums and sekere.
Meredith Knight, manager of Studio Programs at the BMA, said the festival highlighted art from the African gallery that includes pottery, textiles, masks, headdresses and print making materials.
“We have a lot different types of art from around the world so it’s really important for us to highlight those different areas as much as possible,” said Knight.
