Art Students Participate in International Festival in Senegal

Three art students and Associate Professor of Art Marek Ranis received an invitation to participate in the Gorée Diaspora Festival in Senegal, Africa, November 17-29. The annual international art festival was established to promote links through art and cultural exchange between Senegal and the descendants of the slaves forced to leave Africa from Gorée Island.

Students Chauncey Carter, Sheree Davidson, and Nadia Meadows participated in the festival’s first iron pour, working with a group of art students from Senegal and other countries to create a collaborative work that honors the African Diaspora. They also attended lectures and presentations and toured cultural sites in Senegal. Except for airfare, all expenses are covered by the municipality of Gorée Island and the Senegalese Ministry of Education.

Gorée is a small island in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Dakar, Senegal. From the 15th to the 19th centuries, it was the largest slave-trading center on the African coast. It was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1978.

Pictured: Fort d’Estrées on Gorée Island