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Algiers PANAF: 1969-2009
“Push our continent ahead.”
Abdelaziz Bouteflika, President of Algeria
In 1969, the Pan African Cultural Festival (PANAF) took place in Algiers in a political situation marked by the liberation fight led by many African countries against colonialism. This 1st festival commemorated the great decade of independence movements in Africa.
In 2009, the 2nd PANAF in Algiers marks its difference by celebrating that which is unique with every society: its energy and creativity. The festival was an opportunity to evaluate the richness and cultural diversity in Africa nowadays; and to reassert a commitment to the values of Pan-Africanism, based on the dialogue between the African countries. The festival brought to light what is most important today for the African continent: to look forward and undertake the effort to unite Africa.
For the second time in her history, people from all over the world gathered in the city of Algiers. Fifty-one African countries were invited by the festival, in addition to the United States and Brazil. Ten thousand artists, intellectuals and officials attended the festival. From the traditional to the contemporary, all the arts were represented: music, dance, theater, literature, visual arts, film, fashion design and traditional art.
The exhibition displayed as a photo-reportage attempt to re-create from different perspectives the magical ambiance and strength generated by the festival around the city. The photos of Charles Martin, Deborah Willis and Salah Hassan illustrate the vitality and diversity of the events. While the reflexions on the PANAF 2009 from the scholar Clyde Taylor and the writer Joel Dreyffuss bring personal flavors into the narrative.
k'a yelema productions 