Awas, owner of Awa’s African Art, proudly displays her baskets, jewelry, furniture and other wares during the Elegba Folklore Society’s 31st Annual Down Home Family Reunion, A Celebration of African American Folklife. Hundreds attended the festival on Saturday, Aug. 20 at Abner Clay Park in Richmond’s Jackson Ward community where they were treated to art, musical performances, Southern cooking and storytelling. Awas, originally from Senegal, West Africa, moved to Richmond and started her business in 1995. At right is her grandson, Mostapha, and seated at left is her son, Guey Khadim. For three decades, the Elegba Folklore Society has hosted the festival to demonstrate how certain West African cultural practices and traditions have influenced the American South.
