Africa and the World Arts Symposium
African Arts Institute is proud to announce this exciting new event, which includes a series of workshops, seminars, a community dinner, and a culminating performance presentation.
When: October 15-17, 2026
Where: Belleville, Ontario
- Belleville Public Library, 254 Pinnacle St, Belleville ON K8N 3B1
- Quinte Arts Council, 36 Bridge Street East, Belleville, ON K8N 2Y9
- Belleville Fish and Game Club, 150 Elmwood Drive, Belleville, ON K8N 4Z4
Register at eventbrite:
Cost:
- Day pass: 10:30 am-4:00 pm = $30 per day (+HST)
- Evening workshops: $10 per day (+HST)
- Concert: $10 general admission (+HST)
- Lunches & community dinner: free with admission
- The affordable ticket price for this event is courtesy of funding from the City of Belleville, and the Government of Canada (Canada Arts Presentation Fund, and the Multicultural & Anti-Racism Program).
- Free and 1/2 price tickets: We do not want cost to be a barrier to participation. For free or half-price tickets, contact us at info [at] africanartsinstitute.com or 613-970-6401 for a promo code.
Methods of payment:
- Pay online with eventbrite
- Cash at the door – exact change please, remember HST 🙂
The workshops allow you to directly experience African Arts including batik making, African drumming, dance, spoken word poetry, visual arts, and storytelling. By learning from professional artists and culture carriers, you’ll gain a deeper understanding of African culture.
We will explore how many cultures share things in common, such as the drumming workshop that features African, Indigenous, and European drums. We learn about the commonalities of the drums, the shakers, and other percussion instruments. Participants are invited to share about their experiences of drums and rhythms in their own cultural contexts and family histories.
The seminar portions of the event will feature key speakers presenting talks and participating in panel discussions.
The culminating concert features Amadou Kienu Folila performance group, and takes place alongwide a community dinner.
Finally, we will showcase a local visual artists in an exhibition connected to the concert. With these artists, coupled with a lively dinner and exciting performance in the round, we hope to recreate the exciting and busy vibe of an African village.
Schedule Overview
Thursday, October 15
Belleville Public Library
- 10:30 am Keynote
- 12:00 pm Lunch
- 1:00 pm Seminar
- 2:15 pm Panel discussion
- 3:30 pm Break
- 5:00 pm Workshop
Friday, October 16
Belleville Public Library
- 10:30 am Seminar
- 11:30 am Workshop
- 12:30 pm Lunch
- 1:30 pm Seminar-Talk
- 3:00 pm Seminar
Quinte Arts Council
- 5:30 pm Workshop
Saturday, October 17
Fish & Game Club
- 10:30 am Workshop
- 12:00 pm Lunch
- 1:00 pm Workshop
- 2:30 pm Workshop
- 5:00 pm Community dinner
- 6:00 pm Concert
Detailed Schedule
Thursday, October 15
10:30-11:00 am
Keynote Speaker Nikki Clarke: The Art of Belonging: Building Inclusive Communities through Creativity
Belleville Public Library
10:30 am-3:00 pm events all inclusive with $30 entrance fee. Register ahead or pay cash at the door.
11:00 am-12:00 pm
Artist Talk featuring Emebet Belete: Bridging Communities: Creativity, Connection, and Belonging
Belleville Public Library
12:00-1:00 pm
Light lunch
Belleville Public Library
1:00-2:00 pm
Seminar featuring Isaac Akrong: Explore the Connections of African Drum Language and Symbols
Belleville Public Library
2:15-3:30 pm
Panel discussion featuring Nikki Clarke, Isaac Akrong, Nana Yaa Yeboaa
Belleville Public Library
5:00-8:00 pm
Batik workshop led by Deon Best
Belleville Public Library
Registration required, only 15 spots!
Friday, October 16
10:30-11:30 am
Seminar featuring Bushra Junaid: Reimagining Black Atlantic History
Belleville Public Library
10:30 am-3:00 pm events all inclusive with $30 entrance fee. Register ahead or pay cash at the door.
11:30 am-12:30 pm
Visual arts workshop featuring Bushra Junaid
Belleville Public Library
12:30-1:30 pm
Light lunch
Belleville Public Library
1:30-3:00 pm
Storytelling seminar with Nana Yaa Yeboaa: The Spider who Crossed the Atlantic
Belleville Public Library
3:00-4:00 pm
Animation session with Gabriel Odartei: Telling African Stories Through Animation: From Culture to the Global Screen
Belleville Public Library
5:30-7:00 pm
Workshop and seminar with Isaac Akrong, Jennifer Brant, and friends: Drumming Cultures
Quinte Arts Council
Registration required, only 20 spots!
Saturday, October 17
10:30 am-12:00 pm
Dance class with Zahra Badua: Afrofusion
Fish and Game Club
10:30 am-4:15 pm events all inclusive with $30 entrance fee. Register ahead or pay cash at the door.
12:00-1:00 pm
Light lunch
Fish and Game Club
1:00-2:30 pm
Poetry workshop with Amoya Reé: Writing Home
Fish and Game Club
2:30-2:45 pm
Break and snack
Fish and Game Club
2:45-4:15 pm
Dance class with Pulgo Mushoshoma: Contemporary
Fish and Game Club
5:00-7:00 pm
Community dinner and Concert!
Concert featuring Amadou Kienou Folila (and group)
Fish and Game Club
Separate ticket required for dinner & concert
Artists' and Speakers' Bios & Descriptions
Amoya Reé
Poetry workshop, Oct 17
Workshop: Writing Home
In this workshop Amoya Reé will ask participants to identify something that reminds them of home – no matter where home is. Without disclosing, participants will begin to describe this object using a series of prompts. By the end of the session, participants will have constructed their own piece of spoken word poetry that becomes an ode to their home and encourages thoughtful dialogue on belonging, memory and complexities of migration across cultures.
Artist Bio
Amoya Reé (she/her) is a Jamaican-Canadian performance poet, 2018 Canadian National Champion, and 2021 Toronto Grand Slam Champion. Her work draws from her lived experiences as a Black woman, mother, and community worker. Named one of Canada’s Top 100 Women to Watch in 2023, Reé is also a public servant providing arts leadership at the municipal level. In 2025 she released her debut collection, I Never Asked You to Love Me, funded by the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts, which is available on all streaming platforms.
Bushra Junaid
Reimagining Black Atlantic History, Oct 16
Seminar: Reimagining Black Atlantic History
Artist Bio
Bushra Junaid is a Toronto-based artist-curator whose work probes the African diaspora and Atlantic Canadian history. She has exhibited nationally and in the US, curated landmark exhibitions and award-winning public programming, illustrated Adwoa Badoe’s Nana’s Cold Days and is the award-winning author of The Possible Lives of WH, Sailor (Running the Goat Books & Broadsides).
Brian Scott
Exhbition of visual art works, Oct 17
Brian Scott was born in Bath, Ontario, grew up in Montreal, studied art in London,UK, lived and worked in Toronto for 23 years, before moving to Belleville in 2001.
He has exhibited his work across Canada and Europe in over 70 group and solo exhibitions. He has been commissioned to create public artwork for the Art Gallery of Guelph, The City of Toronto, and the City of Kitchener.
A comprehensive overview of his work can be seen at www.brianscott.art
Deon Best
Batik Workshop, Oct 15
Workshop Description
This workshop experience is rooted in hands-on, experiential learning. Participants will actively create their own East African Modern Batik fabric art using accessible approaches such as Batik Express & Hoop Art. The session begins with a live demonstration, followed by guided creation where participants explore materials, pattern, and colour. Deon uses a flexible teaching style that combines visual demonstration, clear step-by-step instruction, and one-on-one support, allowing participants to engage at their own pace. The experience is created to allow exploration without pressure, with moments for sharing and reflection that encourage connection and peer learning. This structure ensures an engaging, inclusive, and meaningful creative experience
Artist Bio
My artistic practice is grounded in the exploration of identity, heritage, and community through the vibrant lens of Modern Batik. This East African wax-resist dye technique, traditionally practiced across various cultures, has become a contemporary storytelling tool in my work, inviting reflection, dialogue, and wonder. My art creations combine bold colors, organic forms, and layered textures to evoke emotional connection and shared cultural experiences. Whether exhibited in galleries, projected onto public buildings, or integrated into hands-on workshops, my work thrives on interaction, inviting audiences to pause, engage, and connect.
Emebet Belete
Seminar / Artist Talk, Oct 15
Artist Talk: Bridging Communities: Creativity, Connection, and Belonging
Join us for an artist talk with Emebet Belete. We’ll learn about her life as an international artist, and about Bridging Communities: Crochet Project, where creativity is the bridge that’s uniting people across local and international communities. We’ll start by making a small paper and yarn sampler as a symbol of how individual contributions weave together into a collective story. Then Emebet will highlight key moments through her project’s journey. Come experience how art brings people together, and celebrates diversity and community through the act of making.
Artist Bio
Emebet Belete is an Ethiopian-born multidisciplinary artist and educator based in Belleville, Ontario. She studied Fine Arts and Education in Ethiopia and Canada. Her practice spans painting, collage, photography and mixed media.
She leads Bridging Communities, a crochet project that encourages creativity and collaboration through fibre arts. Emebet’s work has been supported by grants from the Ontario Arts Council, the City of Belleville and the Quinte Arts Council, reflecting her commitment to community engaged art-making.
Her work has been exhibited locally and internationally, including at the Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Kingston, and the Parrott Gallery in Belleville.
Gabriel Odartei
Seminar / Artist Talk, Oct 16
Seminar: Telling African Stories Through Animation: From Culture to the Global Screen
In this session, Gabriel Odartei, CEO and Managing Director of MAKU Productions, will explore his journey as a creative director, film and animation producer, and African cultural storyteller, and his commitment to bringing African stories and perspectives to global audiences. Through selected episodes of The Mansa Family Show and a trailer presentation of YAMINA: The African Warrior Princess, Gabriel will discuss the creative process behind developing original African-inspired animated content, the importance of authentic cultural representation, and the role of animation as a tool for entertainment, education, cultural preservation, and storytelling. The session will also examine some of the opportunities and challenges of producing African content from the diaspora, building cross-continental creative collaborations, and using new technologies to expand the reach of African stories. The presentation will conclude with an interactive audience Q&A and conversation about the future of African animation and African storytelling on the global stage.
Artist Bio
CEO & Managing Director, MAKU Productions | Creative Director | Film & Animation Producer | African Cultural Storyteller
Gabriel Odartei is an African-Canadian creative executive, filmmaker, animation producer, creative director, and cultural storyteller whose work focuses on bringing African stories, culture, and perspectives to audiences in Canada and around the world. He is the CEO and Managing Director of MAKU Productions, a Canadian film and emerging media company specializing in animation, film, digital storytelling, creative campaigns, and culturally relevant content.
With more than 15 years of experience across the African and Black Canadian arts, entertainment, and community sectors, Gabriel has worked in film production, animation, cultural promotion, event production, community mobilization, and creative direction. His work brings together storytelling, visual media, culture, and community to create projects that entertain, educate, and amplify underrepresented African and diasporic voices.
Gabriel is the creator and producer of YAMINA: The African Warrior Princess, an animated feature-length film inspired by African history, mythology, women’s empowerment, and the impact of colonialism. Produced through MAKU Productions with creative collaborators in Ghana, the project reflects his commitment to developing original African stories through animation and creating opportunities for African creative talent.
He is also the creator and producer of The Mansa Family Show, a family-oriented animated series developed through MAKU Productions. Set within a contemporary Black family and community, the series uses humour, storytelling, and animation to explore African and Canadian culture, family life, identity, history, and social issues in an accessible and entertaining way.
In addition to his work in film and animation, Gabriel is the founder of Ghanalinx Media Group, an African-Canadian entertainment and media platform dedicated to promoting African music, fashion, culture, and entertainment. His broader cultural work has included producing and promoting community events, supporting African artists and organizations, and developing platforms that connect African communities across Canada and the diaspora. As a creative leader, Gabriel is passionate about using film, animation, and media as tools for cultural preservation, education, representation, and global connection. His vision is to help create a stronger space for African stories in international media. Stories that are authentic, contemporary, entertaining, and rooted in the richness and diversity of African experiences. Through MAKU Productions and his ongoing cultural initiatives, Gabriel continues to build creative platforms that bring Africa to the world through the power of storytelling.
Isaac Akrong
Seminar, Oct 15. Drumming Cultures workshop, Oct 16.
Artist Bio
Isaac holds a master’s degree in dance and a PhD in ethnomusicology from York University. He has taught African music and dance at York University, Wesleyan University, Swarthmore College, and many other schools and institutions. As a choreographer, master drummer, and artistic director, Isaac creates new works as well as maintains traditional music and dance through the African Dance Ensemble. Isaac founded Humanity in Harmony festival, bringing together multi-disciplinary artists, academics, and community in a celebration of common humanity through the arts. Isaac has a strong commitment to sharing his knowledge of traditional dance and drumming with the world. As a researcher, he is determined to see Ghanaian music and dance documented for future generations.
Jennifer Brant
Drumming Cultures workshop, Oct 16
Workshop Focus
Haudenosaunee use of the water drum and how it is used in some of our social songs.
Artist Bio
Jennifer E. Brant – Yakothehtón:ni is a singer, songwriter, educator and artist from Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory (Kenhté:ke), Ontario. She sits with the Bear Clan and is a member of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte. Her songs reflect her connection to her Kanyen’kéha (Mohawk) culture, as well as the people and places that surround her.
She has played throughout Eastern Ontario at numerous festivals and events over the past 25 years as a single, duo with her husband Kieran Edwards or with her band Mustang. Jennifer’s most recent album “Resilience” is inspired from traditional cultural values and history of the Haudenosaunee /Rotinonhsyón:ni people along with learning Kanyen’kéha language. Jennifer also released “It’s Wintertime Again” in 2021 which was included in an Outdoor Art Exhibit “Winter Magic” by the Department of Illumination in Prince Edward County. Jennifer and Kieran independently released two albums: Live at Rogue’s Hollow (2002) and Home Sweet Home (2005). Jennifer also recorded a single “Here you Come Again” in 2000 used on a promotional video. As well, Jennifer recorded “The Skater” a Pauline Johnson poem that was a single on a compilation album by Stephen Medd called “My Window To You: A Tribute to Pauline Johnson (2000).
Lorraine Huebner
Exhbition of visual art works, Oct 17
Lorraine is a mixed media visual artist. She was born in Edmonton, Alberta and studied art in Toronto at the Ontario College of Art and Design. After college, she worked as a graphic designer in Toronto for many years. Later, Lorraine lived in Chilliwack BC, where she worked in Recreation, combining her artistic skills and creative background.
Lorraine moved to Belleville in 2019, where she continues her work as a visual artist.
She has exhibited her work in group exhibitions and several of her pieces are in private collections.
The primary objective of her art is to capture the “feeling” of an image, idea, or the materials used themselves. Her interpretations are often abstracted. She works with various techniques and materials depending on the subject and concept.
Her art is an expression of herself and life around her.
Nana Yaa Yeboaa
Panel, Oct 15; Workshop Oct 16
Seminar
The Spider who crossed the Atlantic
Before stories were written down, or bound into books, archived in libraries, or stored in digital clouds, stories lived in people.
They lived in memory, in voice, in repetition, in rhythm, and in the relationship between the storyteller and the listener. A child heard a story from a grandmother, who had heard it from her mother, who had received it from someone before her. In this way, folklore travelled across generations without paper, without recording devices, and without written instruction. The human mind became the archive, and the human voice became the vessel.
Folktales did more than entertain. They carried values, warnings, histories, humour, identity, and ways of understanding the world. Through storytelling, communities taught children how to behave, how to recognize danger, how to question authority, how to survive hardship, and how to remember who they were. Stories could change slightly with each telling, but their deeper meaning endured.
This is the extraordinary power of oral tradition: a story does not have to remain exactly the same in order to remain alive. It adapts to the people who carry it.
Few figures demonstrate this better than Ananse, the spider of Akan storytelling traditions. Ananse survived not because he was preserved in a museum, but because people remembered him. They spoke his name, retold his adventures, reshaped his character, and carried him across generations and eventually across oceans.
The story of Ananse is therefore also a story about memory itself: how people carry culture when almost everything else can be taken away.
Artist Bio
Nana Yaa Yeboaa is a African/Black Canadian born storyteller, author, educator, and podcast host whose work is rooted in African oral tradition and the belief that stories carry the memory, wisdom, and identity of a people.
Drawing inspiration from the Ananse stories of her childhood in Ghana, she uses storytelling to explore African and diasporic experiences of identity, migration, ancestry, womanhood, resilience, and belonging. She is the author of The Praying Mantis, a children’s adaptation of West African folklore, and the creator and host of the Nana Yaa Yeboaa Podcast, where she creates space for Black and African diaspora voices to tell their own stories.
Her work spans oral storytelling, literature, education, podcasting, and community engagement. At its heart is a commitment to preserving African narratives, strengthening intergenerational connections, and reclaiming the storyteller’s traditional role as keeper of memory, teacher, questioner, and bridge between generations.
Dr. Nikki Clarke
Keynote Address, Oct 15
In this inspiring 20-minute keynote, I will explore how the arts can be a powerful vehicle for belonging, representation, inclusion, and anti-racism. Key themes will include:
- Why representation matters in arts, media, and culture
- Moving beyond diversity and tokenism toward genuine belonging
- How storytelling and creativity can challenge racism and unconscious bias
- Creating space for underrepresented voices
- Who gets to tell the story—and who gets to make the decisions
- Using the arts to build empathy, understanding, and stronger communities
- Practical ways individuals and organizations can create more inclusive creative spaces
Pulga Mushoshoma
Contemporary Dance workshop, Oct 17
Pulga Muchochoma is a dancer, choreographer, musician, actor, and director born in Quelimane, Mozambique. His dance career and training began in Quelimane with Montes Namuli Dance Company. In August of 2006, Pulga came to Toronto with the company for the International AIDS Conference. With Montes Namuli/Shakespeare Link Canada, he performed in several shows in venues in Toronto and Mozambique. When Montes Namuli returned to Mozambique, Pulga stayed in Toronto to study at The School of Toronto Dance Theatre. He worked with Toronto Dance Theatre under Artistic Director Christopher House from 2009-2020. During his time with TDT, he had the pleasure of working and collaborating with local and international choreographers such as Christopher House, Veronica Tennant, Danny Grossman, Patricia Beaty, Heidi Strauss, Jeanine Durning, and many more. Pulga participated in the 2015 opening ceremony of the Toronto Pan Am Games with Cirque du Soleil and NBS. With Stratford Festival, he has performed in “Death and the King’s Horseman” and was movement director for “Wedding Band”. Pulga directed a play in Montreal called “Diggers” and was the assistant director and choreographer for the “Fairview” at CanStage. Additionally, he was in the musical “Treemonisha” by Scott Joplin. He has been nominated for 7 Dora awards with TDT and 3 for his own works. He’s the 2026 Jaqueline Lemieux In 2015 Pulga founded Pulga Dance, where he teaches and creates independent works based in Toronto and the GTA. He’s the 2026 Recipient of The Jacqueline Lemieux Prize which recognizes the work of an established dance professional who has made an outstanding contribution to dance in Canada
Zahra Badua
African Dance workshop, Oct 17
Workshop Description
Afrofusion is a dynamic dance style that blends Traditional and Contemporary West African street styles, highlighting the diversity within African dance. Characterized by expressive waist and core isolations, intricate footwork, and rhythmic hip movements, Afrofusion workshops encourage participants to explore individuality and self-expression through movement. This style celebrates both cultural heritage and personal creativity, offering an energetic and inclusive space for all levels.
Artist Bio
Zahra Badua is a multifaceted artist whose work is deeply rooted in her love for dance, education, and the rich cultural heritage of the African diaspora. Her mission within the dance landscape is to preserve and celebrate the beauty and diversity of African and Caribbean-based dance forms.
With extensive training in Traditional West African dance (Ghana and Guinea) and various West and Central African street styles, Zahra has performed, taught, and choreographed for numerous dance companies, schools, and events across Canada and the United States.
She is the founder of ZahraMoves, an educational and performance-based company and serves as the Production and Engagement Coordinator for dance Immersion, a Black-led non-profit organization that produces, promotes, and supports dancers and dances of the African diaspora.
Her skills also extend behind the stage, where she works as a rehearsal director and stage manager for numerous artistic projects across Toronto. This breadth of experience allows her to navigate the creative process from multiple vantage points; performance, education, administration, or production.