Fashion
10 Afrocentric Fashion Styles Worn at the African Festival Of the Arts in Chicago
By SeeBrown · 9/9/2016
Fashion show at African Festival of the Arts in Washington Park Chicago
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Washington Park, Chicago, 60615
This past Labor Day Weekend, the 27th Annual African Festival of the Arts held its celebration of arts, food, music, and fashion in Washington Park in Hyde Park on Chicago’s South Side. This year’s theme was ‘Ruwadzano’, meaning ‘Togetherness’ in Swahili.
Festival attendees expressed the African diaspora's togetherness in their the best looks that represented Black American African, and Caribbean cultures. Here are some of the top Afrocentric looks worn by attendees during the three day festival.
1. Nothing says, Caribbean culture as colors red, green and yellow. The colors symbolizes the Rastafarian colors of Jamaica and also the colors of the Ethiopian flag. This gentleman wore striped red, green, yellow t-shirt tank with his waist-length dreadlocks.
2. One of the many vendors at African Festival of the Arts, created a fun baggy jumper with fabric from his native Senegal. The brown, red patterns mixed with wide belt and turtle-neck style look gives this woman a fun summer weekend style.
3. This gentleman’s summer suit with sleeveless shirt and matching pants and topped off with a brown top hat was eye-catching in slender frame.
4. This millennial in coordinated her look and sported a hunter-green mini-skirt with bra top that was criss-crossed her mid-section. Her brown strapped sandals and black and brown braids gave her look of #BlackGirlMagic
5. Inside the stall of Sonhay booth, this woman modeled a striped mesh summer poncho hand made in bright African fabric colors, yellow, blues, orange and pink. Against her brown skin, style and colors made perfect summer Afro chic top.
6. Reminiscent of the 1930s or 40s summer beach look, this woman wore polka dot dress of blue and white with knee-length flared skirt. Her beautifully tied hair bow, yellow and blue as nice accent that complemented the large red frame sunglasses.
7. A fashion show at one of the stages, showcased the work of local designers. This look with large brimmed straw hat and diagonal striped summer dress of orange and purple is an elegant option for a hot summer evening dinner event.
8. This woman’s cool look with white jumpsuit, black accent ropy necklace was an artful look accented with bold blonde tweeny weeny afro.
9. With curly red hair black tank top with white summer cap, this woman wore a bright smile and beautiful geometric black necklace.
10. Textures and colors are at the heart of Afro-centric fashion. These women stood out in the crowd with their vibrant mix of colors and fabric.
ABOUT the 27th African Festival of the Arts
Annually during Labor Day Weekend, the festival is held on the grounds in Chicago’s Washington Park. The park is transformed into an African Village that celebrates the African diaspora with interactive engagements, vibrant drumming, museum quality and collectible artifacts, colorful and rich handwoven fabric and textile, and other program spaces and Interactive spaces include: Drum & Afro-folk Village, Children and Family, African Heritage, African Spirituality, Wellness (Health) Village, Books and Authors, Fine Art, Film and Video, Food Court, Seniors and Quilting, Black Dolls (making and collecting - 2015) and the African Marketplace.