The Asmara-Addis Literary Festival (In Exile) is an upcoming multilingual event held in Brussels, Belgium on November 29 & 30, that shares pan-African and feminist values. By featuring a diverse array of European and international artists, the festival showcases global talent and fosters a rich cultural environment.

This sixth edition of the festival will feature multi-lingual art performances, poets, painters, musicians, dancers, and more!

The focus of this edition is on the “Body’s Languages.” This is the connection between the body and language expressed in different colors and shapes. The various languages used to create this art are perceived as “thread woven throughout the body.”

The venue that was chosen for this year’s festival “nurtures community, creativity, & care” through it’s open layout, giving the participants room to look at all of the art around them.

The founder of the Asmara-Addis Literary Festival (In Exile), Sulaiman Addonia, was inspired by his time in a refugee camp in Sudan during his childhood. He describes this as a time of being in a “simple place in a land of scarcity, rich in the wealth of stories exchanged between visitors and hosts.”

Addonia’s hope is to create a welcoming space for open conversations with varying opinions and depths. The festival is a perfect place for creators and visitors with different backgrounds to come together and celebrate art and history.

The fundamental value of the festival is “to curate both artists and audiences with the same passion.” Through the belief that art should not be separate from the city and its people, the festival is able to bring people together from different backgrounds who share the love for the city of Brussels.

This idea is a way to route art back to the community because “reaching a diverse audience is never an afterthought…rather, it is a fundamental part of the artistic foundation of the festival.”

The festival encourages people from minority groups to attend so they feel represented in the audience. Through collaborations with the Brussel’s community centers and cultural institutions, the festival is able to open up participation to a wide range of individuals.

They hope to get the word of the festival out to the public through “targeted press coverage, broad communication in the city and online, and intensive contact with local communities.”

They also want to get as many people that want to attend the festival the chance to go as they can. If you are a refugee, an asylum seeker, unemployed, a student, or experiencing financial difficulties, they encourage you to come at no cost. Tickets will be available at the door of the festival.

To read more about the Asmara-Addis Literary Festival (In Exile), go to their website.