The African Cultures Festival continues through May at Radford University. The festival began last fall with a variety of educational and entertaining events, including lectures, films, dance performances and a children’s festival designed to share the customs, traditions and history of African cultures.

RU faculty and students worked together to bring the festival to the university and surrounding communities. Everyone is invited to attend these events, which are free of charge. From now through May 16 there will be a gallery open in Powell Hall, room 205, displaying Tesfaye Tessema’s work: Affirmation of the Self. Born in Ethiopia, Tessema synthesizes African and Western elements to create paintings that speak to the affirmative human experience. His works are in several prominent collections, including those of the United Nations, the Library of Congress, and the Smithsonian Institution.

The African Cultures Festival is sponsored by the McGlothlin Family Endowment and the RU International Education Center. To learn more about these events and others available throughout the spring, you can contact the International Education Center at 540.831.6200.