Category: Arts & Culture

Imagine We, a local social enterprise, recently opened a co-working space that has so far brought together six start-ups in one setting to share experiences and keep all afloat.

Located near Kacyiru Sector office in Kigali, the space dubbed “Imagine Nation” seeks to help small and medium enterprises overcome challenges that fail them in the first three years of operation.

The five companies in Imagine We’s co-working space laud the new working approach and urge other start-ups to emulate the model.

The five include; Acacia Book Café which sells gift items in a coffee shop setting; Bag Innovation, founded by a Swedish national who prepares university students into becoming consultants; Elcon Media which deals in producing documentaries and animation; Ikobe Communications focusing on storytelling and Awesomity Lab which creates websites, software and applications.

Speaking to IGIHE last Friday, Imagine We’s founder Dominique Uwase Alonga said she realised the need for facilitating start-ups to grow and opened doors for them in June, considering that she had a very big space at her premises.

“It is about two months since we opened this co-working space but I have realised that such space is highly needed because I had received five new entrants within the first month while I expected to receive the first company at least after six months. We are now six companies in these premises,” she said.

Companies in the space are gaining clients from one another because visitors to one take a tour all around, sharing experiences, helping one another with skills and equipments as well as a significant reduction on operational costs mainly on house rent and utilities.

Each company pays a monthly rent of between $50 (around Rwf41,000) and $200 (Rwf165,000) depending on the size of the room a company needs.

“Starting companies often suffer from financial constraints, lack of clients and partners, and limited capacity in institution management especially because we are all young. All managers of these six companies are aged less than 30 years. Working together has got us solutions to most of these challenges,” says Alonga.

She added that the space is temporarily closed in order to harmonise the co-working conditions and build up firm systems before receiving new entrants in the next two months

The six companies in ‘Imagine Nation’ space have started a joint radio talk show project on how to start a company in Rwanda and it is being executed by Elcon Media, one among the six.

Yvès Honoré Bisemage, one of Awesomity Lab founders said their operational costs have reduced and clients doubled since they joined the co-working space last month.

Natasha Umutoni, a founding member of Acacia Book Café said they have also gained clients and operational costs reduced up to 30% since June when they got into Imagine We’s Imagine Nation.

Alonga advises young entrepreneurs to get together, avoid expensive offices and equipments in order to first develop themselves instead of trying to look bigger than they really are.

Having opened in January 2015 with the aim of encouraging Rwandans to read and write, Imagine We has reached out to 6000 people, opened libraries in 20 schools and University Teaching Hospital of Kigali (CHUK), trained many language teachers and published two books. It is publishing three more books and opening libraries in three hospitals including CHUB in this August.

A couple of artists, as well as poets, are preparing this event dubbed “Ubugeni Bugema Umugani”. They’ve had in mind for a while to showcase their art pieces. They also have a plan to strengthen the art of Rwanda proverbs.

The artists portraying their pieces will consist of Uwase Crista, Epa Binamungu and the renowned poet Jean de Dieu Nsanzabera.

During a discussion held with the media recently, Epa Binamungu, founder of Inganzo Arts Center revealed the event will be mainly to display the culture and mostly to bring back the practice of Rwandan poetry.

Those who will attend the exhibition will admire the work of distinctive artists, purposely painted to flourish Rwandan traditional culture and transmit this to the youth, especially the exquisite practice of proverbs that has been forgotten by many over the years.

“As we know, many people forgot some of what makes our traditional culture such as the reciting of proverbs mostly among the youth.”

Dealing with the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide in 1994 and inherent topics of trauma, racism and the treatment of women, Birds are singing in Kigali, is a a raw retelling but ultimately hopeful film about the extremes of human nature.

Directed by wife-and-husband duo Joanna Kos-Krauze and Krzystof Krauze – whose previous films together include 2013’s Papusza – the film will have its world premiere in Karlovy Vary’s Official Competition where Kryzstof Krauze won a Crystal Globe in 2004 for the film My Nikifor. It’s a bittersweet affair as Krauze passed away from cancer in 2014, leaving his wife to complete the film.

The stand-out is Rwandan actress Elaine Umuhire whose combination of quiet dignity and fierce anger, mesmerize the audience.

This powerful piece provides a fitting tribute to the late film-maker and should find many new admirers of his work with Joanna. Further festival showings seem assured, while there is every chance that arthouse distributors will circle a film which deals with issues that should resonate with international audiences.

In 1994, Polish ornithologist Anna (Jowita Budnik) finds herself caught up in the Rwandan genocide. There she witnesses terrible atrocities – including the murder of a Rwandan colleague with whom she had been working for years. Smuggling his daughter Claudine (Eliane Umuhire) out of the country, Anna carries deep emotional scars from the trauma she has witnessed. But the presence of Claudine makes leaving these memories behind a difficult process. As time goes on, Claudine tries to assimilate in Poland but the desire to return to her home country and achieve closure on the deaths of family and friends remains strong. When the opportunity to return to Rwanda arises, both must be ready to face the terrible truths of the past.

Utilising a flashback structure, the film flits between the naturalistic and the surreal as snatches of brutality surface like nightmares. Yet for all the rawness at the heart of the film, there are moments of transcendence – such as a flock of birds flying into dappled, sunset skies – reminding us that amongst the ugliness there is always a possibility of beauty.

But while the film deals with many themes – racism and immigration are also touched upon – it never feels disjointed thanks to the way the screenplay filters everything through Anna and Claudine’s fractured relationship. While this was born from the best intentions of humanity – to save another person’s life – it is also typified by anger and recrimination, with their relationship reminding one another of the terrible things both have suffered.

Jowita Budnik – a frequent collaborator of the Krauzes – gives a brittle and subtle performance as Anna, with emotions bubbling under the surface ready to explode at any moment. But the stand-out is Rwandan actress Umuhire whose combination of quiet dignity and fierce anger is mesmerising.

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Created in 1946 by and for museum experts from 136 countries and territories, the International Council of Museums (ICOM) was established to respond to the challenges museums face worldwide. Fighting illicit traffic of objects, art and cultural mediation, museum emergency program, intangible heritage and cultural tourism, became a core concern at the time.

Crusade for museums; Before officially creating IMD (International Museums Day), ICOM gathered the international community, in 1951, for a meeting called; Crusade for museums, to discuss the theme, “Museums and education”. The idea of IMD came to be inspired by then, by the framework for museums accessibility developed at the meeting.

The 1977 revolution; IMD was officially established in 1977 with the adoption of a revolution during ICOM general assembly in Moscow, Russia to create an annual event “with the aim of further unifying the creative aspirations and efforts of museums and drawing the attention of the world public to their activity”.

Every year since 1977, IMD is organized worldwide around May 18th. This day is an occasion to raise awareness on how important museums are in the development of society. The activities to mark the celebrations can last a day, a week, or even a month. Participation in IMD has grown and still growing among museums over the world. In 2015/16, more than 35000 museums participated in the event in some 145 countries.

2017, under the theme, “Museums and contested histories: saying the unspeakable in museums” has caught the attention of many countries than ever before. On this day, participating museums around the world planned creative events and activities related to the above theme, engaged with the public their public and highlighted the importance of the role of museums as institutions that serve society and development.

Lessons from the theme

History is vital in defining a given people’s identity, and each one of us is defined through important and fundamental historic events. Unfortunately, contested histories are isolated traumatic events, these histories that are often little known or misunderstood resonate universally, as they concern and affect us all.

Museum collections offer reflections of memories and representations of history. IMD is therefore to provide an opportunity to show how museums display and depict memories to encourage visitors to think beyond their own individual experiences. By focusing on the role of museums as hubs for promoting peaceful relationship between people, this year’s theme highlights how the acceptance of a contested history is the first step in envisioning a shared future under the banner of reconciliation. Museums are important means of cultural exchanges, enrichment of cultures and development of mutual understanding, co-operation and peace among people.

Rwanda museums & IMD: a week to be remembered

The Institute of National Museums of Rwanda (INMR), under the theme, “Umuco wacu Inkingiy’Ubunyarwanda” (Our culture, Rwandan identity), joined the rest of the world in celebrating IMD. The activities started with open door day, on 18th/ May, where the general public was invited, free of charge, to visit all museum branches in the country. The event was a success, to the tune that saw many schools and the local communities around visit nearby museums in large numbers (4,231) tentatively.

The second activity to commemorate IMD was held on 20th/May/2017. The competitions that were organized between different schools in Nyanza at the National Art Gallery (NAG) were exciting, challenging, and worth it. The judges for the day were left mesmerized by the outstanding performances exhibited by students. The results for the winners were held up until 26th/5/2017, when IMD will be celebrated officially in Rwanda/Nyanza district.

This week on 25th/May, 2017, is yet another activity that will involve INMR in partnership with media houses in Rwanda, touring the National Liberation Museum Park in Gicumbi, Nyanza, and Huye museums as well.

To sum up the D-day celebrations, IMD will be hosted at the National Art Gallery (NAG) in Nyanza. The day will be blessed by the carnival walk around Nyanza town up to the museum. More cultural entertainments and performances will be exhibited.

By David Nkusi

The author is a Cultural Heritage Analyst/ Philosophical studies expert
nkusidavid@rocketmail.com

Organizers of competitions for talented poets, Trans Poesis, have unveiled a plan of supporting the advancement of Rwanda’s poetry, taking it to a higher level.

Tuyisenge Olivier, one of organizers of the competition said that they were motivated to do so after realizing how poetry in Rwanda is fading over time while the few existing poets never progress yet poetry is part of Rwanda’s rich heritage.

“Poetry and other artistic expressions are most of the time needed to entertain and teach. We have developed the idea so that people with such a talent may progress and get their talent valued to the extent that a person can listen to poetry as he/she do to music ,” he said.

Tuyisenge explained that they will award three talented poets among 12 contestants.

He said that they have been carrying out mobilization to encourage people to participate in the competition.The organizers have selected 12 among 49 contenders who will participate in the finals.The three poets will be awarded on 29th October 2016 at Café Neo in Kiyovu at 6:00 pm.

Tuyisenge has called on people with talent in poetry to use it as it holds a significant position in Rwanda’s culture.

Poetry in Rwanda was popularized by Queen Nyiraruganzu Nyirarumaga who lived during the reign of King Ruganzu Ndoli around 1510.

In the past, Rwanda’s poets were considered great people and philosophers, and custodians of kingdom secrets.

Trans Poesis is a group of three people including Tuyisenge Olivier, Kayitare Mustafa and Dr. Andrea Grieder from Switzerland who have committed to promote poetry in Rwanda.