Here is everything you missed at Ghana’s largest arts and culture festival, Chale Wote

2. What?

Chale Wote has gained notoriety for its mind-blowing art performances, street painting, graffiti murals, photography, theater, spoken word, interactive art installations, live street performances, extreme sports, film shows, fashion parade, design workshops, music concerts, and much more. 

In this video, Nigeria artist, Stacey Okparavero, invites festival attendees to sit in her installation and wash dolls, symbolic of the people of the Niger Delta, of oil. In the process, she shares the trauma Nigerians in the Niger Delta experience at the hands of corporate and political greed for oil in the region. In the background, a recording plays of a pre-eminent Nigerian scholar who speaks of the atrocities in the region.

One of the street activities of the day; Ghanaian youth show their skills on skates to a mesmerized crowd.

Ghanaian youth show amazing bodywork with pans typically used for washing and carrying goods

Street boxing is part of Jamestown’s culture. Many of the country’s celebrated boxers hail from the streets. Here, children box to the cheer of onlookers and a referee ensures that the fight is safe and fun

Procession of Ga chiefs, which is important for commemorating and respecting the traditions while holding a festival in the community

An event of the Diaspora, above is a video of a man teaching children at the festival the Afro-Brazilian dance, Capoeira

Young artists paint live on murals

Conversation with young Ghanaian art vendor

Festivals like this are important because children emulate what they see.