Africa Month celebrations continue

UCT's Celebrating Africa Month continued last week with a fashion show, masquerade, exhibitions and talks galore.

On the catwalk: Participants strut their stuff during the Faculty of Law's Afropolitan Through Fabric fashion show.	Inheritance: A performance depicting traditional African lore at the opening event of The Exuberance Project on 11 May.

On 10 May the Faculty of Law hosted Afropolitan Through Fabric, an event that threw the spotlight on some of Africa's cultural riches - from traditional homebrew and wear to a fashion show featuring designers from South Africa, Mali and Nigeria, among other nations.

Deputy dean of postgraduate studies in the faculty, Professor Elrena van der Spuy, said that the day was about "creating the space for a different kind of conversation about Africa and who we are".

The following day, the Gordon Institute for Performing and Creative Arts (GIPCA) kicked off The Exuberance Project, a weekend symposium of performances, screenings and exhibitions. The weekend was launched with a masquerade, replete with fire and stilt performances. Later that evening, attendees were bussed to the Fugard Theatre to watch David Kramer and Taliep Petersen's breathtaking show Kat and the Kings.

The project, which was convened by Raél Jero Salley, senior lecturer at UCT's Michaelis School of Fine Art, provided a platform to "develop the discourses while thinking about abundance rather than lacks", said GIPCA director, Associate Professor Jay Pather.

Speaking at both events, deputy vice-chancellor Professor Thandabantu Nhlapo described Africa Month as an outward showing of who we are inside, with "a serious scholarly and intellectual intent".

View the photo album of the law faculty's Afropolitan Through Fabric event.