In the digital world where a factory in China is able to churn out thousands of computer-generated art pieces that mimic actual art and export them to be sold at a knock off price, art as a profession has never been threatened.

Similarly, for many, the cost of real art is a turn off. You really have to be an art lover to spend Rwf300, 000 on an art piece in these hard economic times. For young people, hand-made art is no longer something they would consider for a career.

Actual art requires time. A good art piece requires enough time to fully perfect it. For the fast-paced millennials, art is time consuming and perhaps old school. Not so?

21-year-old Innocent Ishimwe is one of the few young people who still believe art as an industry can survive the digital storm because nothing can replace the natural touch of an artist.

It is for that reason that even at his young age he didn’t fear venturing into the uncharted path of traditional art, at a time people can search and find whatever they want on their smartphones by just a click. 

The Nyundo School of Art graduate built on his childhood passion for art, inspired by his uncle back in 2009, to build his own career as an artist.

"From an early age, I was passionate about art. I got it from my uncle back in 2009. He was attending Nyundo School of Arts, so he kind of introduced me to his career in art and the different drawing styles,” recalls Ishimwe, who hails from an artistic family.

In primary school, teachers recognised his art talent and they would ask him to be the one to draw examples of whatever they wanted to show the class on the blackboard.

It was not until 2017 that he decided to take a leap of faith and turn his passion into something he can do for a living. While pursuing O-level, he learned that there is a lot you can do as an artist.

Luckily, his parents were not the strict type who dictate what their children should become when they grow up. They wanted him and his siblings to determine what they wanted to be.

"They would say to us that if you have something that you are truly passionate about, go for it,” he recalls.

At the time he picked up interest in drawing, sketching and painting but he also thought of becoming a filmmaker. He chose to major in painting. Today, he is immersed into painting and currently is dwelling more on portraits.

Though he is officially in his first year of doing art as a professional artist, Ishimwe says that things are turning out better than he expected. Joining the industry, he knew it would take a long time to set his foot on the ground.

"I didn’t expect things to go the way they are going right now,” says Ishimwe, attributing his progress to his resilience and the desire to keep pushing until things happen.

"It is progress,” he says, adding that he has been able to create connections and contacts that have really turned out to be helpful.

Challenges

However, it has not been a journey without challenges. Having officially started off when the Covid-19 pandemic was hitting the world, there were not many people buying art products.

The other challenge is the limited supply of art materials because most of what they use has to be imported from Europe or China.

He also says that today, most people don’t value art as it should be and wonder why some art pieces should be costly, but all those challenges haven’t stopped him. He believes someone can fully depend on art.

"Someone can survive on only art but as I said it just requires patience. This month won’t be the same as next month and the next month won’t be the same as the past two months.

"So, one has to be patient and keep striving for it. You keep learning, you keep growing and expanding,” he says, pointing out that when one thing doesn’t work, you go back to the drawing board and change strategy.

Ishimwe says the most expensive piece he has ever sold went for Rwf700, 000 while the least costly pieces don’t go below Rwf50, 000. In a good month, he sells pieces ranging between Rwf200, 000 and Rwf500, 000. His clients are diverse.

Currently most of his clients are people looking to have their portraits done. People call him and send him portrait photos which they want recreated as art pieces.

Ishimwe, whose studio is located in Masaka, Kicukiro district, hopes to expand his workshop and employ other artists.

Advice to young people

For Ishimwe, art is more about passion. You need to have the passion before you look at art as a quick avenue to make money. Patience, paying attention to details and finding your niche is very important.

Sometimes he takes days or a week on one piece just to perfect it, depending on the size. It is not a quick money business. Money comes as a reward for a job well done. Sometimes you go for months without money coming in but you stay dedicated.

Ishimwe draws inspiration from contemporary artistes from back in the day who lived and loved art such as Andrew Tischler, a neo-classical artist from New Zealand from the 16th Century.

If you want to get in touch with Innocent Ishimwe, you can reach him on 0784003163.