Contemporary East Africa – modern Art from Burundi and Rwanda
Emmanuel Nkuranga describes himself as self-taught, works with a variety of materials and, together with his brother Innocent Nkurunziza, is the founder of the Inema Arts Centre in Kigali, Rwanda. He has attracted and continues to attract international attention at exhibitions in the USA, Great Britain and Sweden. The New York Times also drew attention to him in an article.
Innocent Nkurunziza knew from the age of eight that he wanted to become an artist. At that time, he was still living with his family in Uganda. The family later moved to Rwanda. At the age of fourteen, he took part in an artist’s workshop, which he was the only one of over 100 participants to complete. He has attracted international attention at various exhibitions in the USA.
Nelson Niyakire was born in Burundi in 1990 and started painting at the age of 17. He exhibited his paintings in public for the first time in 2011 under the title ‘TRACE’. Since then, he has worked tirelessly, alternating between painting – using a wide variety of materials – and photography. He has already organised several exhibitions, particularly in his home town of Bujumbura.
Routes through Africa
Barbara Huebscher has travelled through Africa on many journeys. She has also got to know young artists and learnt to love the power of their work. The idea of publicising the painters and their works in Germany quickly emerged. At our exhibition, three artists from East Africa are waiting to be discovered by a German audience.