The Doek Arts Trust has announced the return of the biennial Doek Literary Festival, inviting readers, writers, visual artists, and the public to a four-day celebration of literature, art, music, and storytelling in Windhoek
Running from Wednesday, 30 September to Saturday, 3 October at the Goethe-Institut Namibia, the third edition of the festival will operate under the theme “History is Handmade,” exploring analogue storytelling and traditional craft.
Hosted by the Doek Arts Trust in partnership with Bank Windhoek, the biennial festival has grown into one of the country’s leading cultural platforms, showcasing local literature alongside voices from Africa, the African diaspora and the wider international literary community.
This year’s edition will feature conversations, poetry readings, creative writing and craft workshops, a curated art exhibition, musical performances, vinyl listening sessions and a culinary experience rooted in local hospitality.
According to the Trust, for the first time, the festival will include a practical Arabic calligraphy workshop, adding a distinctive creative dimension to the programme.
This year’s programme brings together award-winning and emerging literary voices from Namibia and the rest of the world, including Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah (USA), Ayesha Harruna Attah (Ghana), Pumla Dineo Gqola (South Africa), Ondjaki (Angola), Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu (Zimbabwe), Nathalie Handal (USA), Gregory Pardlo (USA), Devon Walker-Figueroa (USA), and Amine Serhane (Morocco).
Visual artists Katherine Hunter and Serhane will exhibit work during the festival, while Querida returns with live performances alongside vinyl selectors Brother Mbango, DJ Musketeer and Le Roux van Schalkwyk. Festival guests Joyce Hwang and Mervyn Sloman will contribute to conversations about literature, cities, community and the sustainability of literary festivals.
As an official partner since 2021, and through its support of Doek’s projects, including the Bank Windhoek Doek Literary Awards and the Doek Literary Festival, the bank has helped create platforms for writers, poets, visual artists and cultural practitioners to develop, connect and gain recognition.
“This partnership reflects the Bank’s commitment to creating value for stakeholders and supporting positive change in the communities it serves,” Doek noted.
According to Doek, admission to all festival events is free of charge, and where stationery or art supplies are required for selected workshops, these will also be provided at no cost to participants, in line with Doek’s mission to make literature more accessible.
The full daily programme is available at https://festival.doek.africa/
