Fatima Sacko ‘17 of New York City models an outfit during the Inside Africa Fashion Show held Nov. 8, 2013. (Sarah Crosby/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

Celebrating the depth and variety of African culture and art, ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College presents the third annual Inside Africa Fashion Show at 8 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 8, in the Olin Arts Center Concert Hall, 75 Russell St.

The Africana Club, a student group, sponsors the event. It is free and open to the public, but tickets are required, available at . For more information, please contact nkanu@bates.edu.

While previous Inside Africa shows included song and modern-style dance, this year’s goes deeper in those directions and will include traditional dances as well as spoken-word poetry, says event founder Nicole Kanu, a ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ junior from Little Rock, Ark.

Too many people see Africa as a single country, she says. “A lot of our participants wanted to see other art forms in the show as a way to emphasize the idea of diversity within Africa.” In addition, this year’s show focuses on fashion as it relates to social justice issues.

And the show is more timely than ever, given the growing African influence in Western fashion — witness J.C. Penney’s engaging of Nigerian designer Duro Olowu as the department store chain’s first seasonal designer in 2012.

This year’s Inside Africa will present 15 to 25 student models showcasing traditional and modern garb from a multitude of nations and walks of life. They will model to music from the country or region they are representing.

In total, about 10 students involved in the show are from Africa or of African descent while about 15 others are of Asian, Latin/Spanish and other European descent. Kanu, whose parents are Nigerian, started Inside Africa her first year at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and looks forward to passing responsibility for the event along to underclassmen so they can make it their own.

“The first-years and sophomores are heavily invested in it and want to tell their own stories,” she says. As a rhetoric major, Kanu sees her role as being a person who renders the cultural themes of the event into artistic terms that both engage and inform.

Kanu hopes local residents will make a point of attending Inside Africa. “We welcome community members, especially considering the presence of the Somali community in Lewiston,” she says. Somali culture and fashion will have a place in the show.

By using fashion to shift the conversation toward cultural celebration, the Africana Club hopes to entice social scientists and fashionistas alike.

At ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College’s 2012 Inside Africa Fashion Show, sophomore Nerissa Brobbey models a Togolese boubou dress with matching head scarf. At right, Gulaid Abdullahi wears a traditional ma’awis and kofia hat. Photograph by Simone Schriger ’14/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College.

Reflecting the influence of African fashion abroad as well as the diversity of the continent’s own apparel, the second annual Inside Africa Fashion Show at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College starts at 8 p.m. Friday, March 15, in the Olin Arts Center Concert Hall, 75 Russell St.

Sponsored by the Africana Club, a student organization, the event is open to the public at no cost. For more information, please contact nkanu@bates.edu.

Some 30 students will model apparel from more than 10 African nations, expanding this year to include Senegal, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Swaziland and Gambia.

The program also includes a Swahili song sung a cappella by members of the Africana Club and two dance numbers — a medley of dance styles from across Africa and a Ghanaian Azonto dance, the upbeat hand-gesture style that went viral in 2011.

“I am inviting ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ students and the community to see Africa,” explains organizer Nicole Kanu. A sophomore from Little Rock, Ark., she is the daughter of a Nigerian couple. “Many look at Africa as one country and fail to see that it is a continent that contains many countries, cultures and backgrounds.”

In addition to presenting traditional garb, the show will look at the impacts of African fashion outside the continent. “A lot of clothes in America have African influences,” says Kanu, such as “tribal print” leggings and wildlife-print fabrics that are popular this season.

Inside Africa will “give students a chance to look at their closet and see — ‘hmm, where did this come from? What was the inspiration for this outfit?’ ” she says. “And oftentimes, if you research that designer or that line of clothing, you’ll see that it does stem from African fashion.”

Where last year’s show took the form of a fictionalized grand tour of the continent, this year’s edition will place more weight on fashion facts, says Kanu.

“It’ll be fun, definitely, but it’s meant to be informative and show a dimension of Africa that people don’t normally see here.”

Modeling Nigerian dresses for the Inside Africa Fashion Show are first-year students (from left) Folarera Fasawe, Michelle Pham and fashion show host Nicole Kanu.

Traditional and contemporary fashions from Africa are the focus of ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½’ premiere Inside Africa Fashion Show, starting at 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 10, in the Olin Arts Center Concert Hall, 75 Russell St.

Sponsored by the Africana Club, a student organization, the event is open to the public at no cost. For more information, please contact nkanu@bates.edu.

In addition to students modeling apparel from 10 African nations, the program includes a dance from the Congo, a performance of Ghana’s popular Azonto mime dancing and a rendition of the South African national anthem by the Gospelaires, a choir composed of singers from ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and Lewiston-Auburn.

“I thought it would be interesting to invite ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ and the community to see Africa,” explains Nicole Kanu, who conceived of the show and will host it. A first-year student from Little Rock, Ark., she is the daughter of a Nigerian couple. “Many look at Africa as one country and fail to realize that it is a continent that contains many countries.

“The Inside Africa Fashion Show will take the audience into Africa and focus on some of the smallest differences between countries — in their attire. This show is about Africa today.”

The show will follow a plot depicting a student who is backpacking through Africa. “Each stop she makes shows her a different aspect,” Kanu says. At the end of the fashion show, the backpacking student will bring Africa back to America as models demonstrate how to mix and match American and African apparel.