3 Black art festivals to visit this September

London has always been renowned for its outstanding provision of artistic experiences. In recent years, we have also seen a more welcome move towards art that centers on Black identities and culture.
This September, GUAP has selected three festivals showcasing and celebrating Black creativity in film and literature.

REDEYE’s Celebrating Soul Film & Arts Festival 

Marking the end of its first season, REDEYE – a community-based not-for-profit organization – has planned a day festival with a range of film screenings and activities. 

South Londoner Darryl Daley will be showcasing his work exploring the concept of home, whereas sound artist Ain Bailey’s work Our Wedding pairs photographs from her parent’s wedding album with poetry and an original soundtrack. Scholar and artist Emma Zinha presents a documentary about Black women and motherhood, whereas the multi-disciplinary project METAMORPH revisits the classical myth of Daphne. Alongside the screening, the day features workshops ranging from Sip & Paint to a Mindfulness & Creativity activation led by Clementine Bedos and a collective art exhibition and food and drinks by family-run businesses. 

REDEYE’s Celebrating Soul Film & Arts Festival takes place at The Bomb Factory Art Foundation on Saturday 2nd of September. Book your tickets now.

S.O.U.L. Fest 

Now in its fifth year, S.O.U.L. Fest is an annual celebration of Black British talent in film and T.V. in partnership with A.B.F.F. Global. The festival takes over BFI Southbank and Picturehouse Central, offering attendees a first look at award-winning feature films and shorts with Q&As with talent from behind the camera. 

Highlights include a screening of Brother (directed by Clement Virgo), a Canadian drama film delving into the life of two Caribbean brothers in Toronto, a preview screening of the critically acclaimed Netflix series Top Boy and Sheffield DocFest 2023’s Official Selection documentary, White Nanny, Black Child. 

Alongside these acclaimed offerings, S.O.U.L. will also be screening shorts from UK-based filmmakers – This year’s line-up includes directorial gems from Stephané Alexandre, Precious Alabi, Adjani Salmon, and Yero Timi-Biu.

S.O.U.L. Fest takes place at BFI Southbank and Picturehouse Central from Friday, 1st of September to Sunday, 3rd September. Check out the entire program and book your tickets here.

Africa Writes

The UK’s largest celebration of contemporary African and diasporic literature, Africa Writes, returns this September at The British Library. This year, the festival, brought to you by the Royal African Society, explores the theme of Intangible Heritage, reflecting on the things that make us who we are. On Friday 29th of September, writer Irenosen Okojie will discuss his debut novel The Scent of Burnt Flowers, which takes readers on a journey from Alabama to Accra in the 1960s, in conversation with the multidisciplinary artist renowned for her direction of Beyonce’s Black Is King, Blitz Bazawule. 

Poets Kwame Dawes and Claudia Rankine will close the festival with work responding to this year’s theme in all its facets. 

Check out the entire program and book tickets for the festival, which is taking place at the British Library, with online streaming available here. 

Discover more from GUAP’s Arts and Culture Section here.