For many weeks now, Innocent Buregeya has been busy toiling away at the Kimihurura based Uburanga Art Center, creating a collection of unique pieces of paintings and artwork which were unveiled last week during an art exhibition that is running for two weeks at Heaven Restaurant in Kiyovu.

The title of the exhibit is "The World of Children” and he says that this is a tribute to passionate children, who are continuing to show their passion for art in Rwanda.

Having started his artistic odyssey at only seven years when he was in primary school, drawing cartoons and creating rudimentary childhood toys using wires and boxes, Buregeya had to give his artistic passion a break when he joined EPAK Secondary School in 1996, where he studied electronics and telecommunication.

But with his erudition, he found that the formal job market was a different kettle of fish after staying for some time in the cold, and had to revert to his childhood passion to profit from his artistic talent.

"I didn’t give it a second thought once I decided to do art to make a living. There were several youthful artists that were already establishing a reputation in a nascent contemporary art industry and I just had to join the bandwagon,” he says.

In 2010, Buregeya met Jean Bosco Bakunzi, the founder of Uburanga arts studio, who encouraged him to join his studio. He has since held four solo art exhibitions in Rwanda, United States (2010) and Sweden (last year). 

In 2013, the 26-year old co-founded an art project, dubbed "Team Arts for Heart”, together with Swedish artist Bruce Erika, with the main objective of "going to different places and looking for people who’re passionate about art and helping them express themselves.”

He said, "Our project is not only geared towards teaching these people art but also helping them to know how they can be instrumental in saving the environment.”

Some of the art pieces that Buregeya has been working on for his exhibition express his love for conserving the environment. Apart from painting, he uses recycled materials like old toothbrushes and spoons to pass the message of the beauty of using these discarded materials for practical purposes.

Early this year, Buregeya worked with a group of vulnerable women with the help of AVEGA-Agahozo, an association of Genocide widows), teaching them how they can make necklaces and postcards, among other objects, to have sustainable income to help them pull out of their indigence.

On the theme of his exhibition, Buregeya says that he likes spending his time with children whom he teaches about the rubrics of arts since he also started expressing his talent while he was still very young.

"I get my inspiration from the world of children, how they’re eager to learn and express their own ideas. I got enough encouragement from my parents and teachers to pursue my own dreams and this has a profound influence on me to work with kids improve their talents,” he says.

Buregeya says he has also been working with children at Gakenke Primary School in Gakenke District dedicating his time to teaching the youngsters some basics in art.

He adds that, through meeting different artists, it has enabled him to appreciate that art can be used as a key ingredient in the country’s development, especially since it creates jobs.

"Gone are the days when artists were considered to be failures in life because people didn’t believe that art could bring in real money,” he says.

"The youthful generation of artists has since debunked this stereotype, and it’s important that we inculcate in the young minds that art can also work for them in their future endeavors,” says Buregeya.

He says the exhibition will feature over 50 art pieces ranging from mix media to abstract artwork.

Art lovers can expect to be fascinated by a repertoire of pieces at the exhibition.