Chris Aluka Berry's intimate photos from within Black Appalachian communities are collected in his first book, Affrilachia: Testimonies. More than 100 photos are interspersed with poetry, along with Aluka’s personal observations through the six years he spent making photos in the pockets of Black communities in Western North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee.

A handful of these photos are on view through July 2026 in the upstairs gallery of the Madison County Arts Council building in downtown Marshall. Aluka, as he prefers to be called, talks with Matt Peiken about his career and creative arcs and the work and time he puts into earning the trustn and the welcome mat, from his subjects.