ON June 16, 2010 the Goethe-Institut, Liaison Office in Kigali held the opening for Collin Sekajugo’s exhibition, "As Rwanda Turns: Re-inventing Sculpture and Painting.

Karin Kathöfer, an official from the Goethe-Institut, Liaison Office said that the event was extremely successful.

"It is the first exhibition the Goethe-Institut, Liaison Office, Kigali has held with a local artist, and it we feel that his work is an important opening of our gallery space, as he has been so instrumental in promoting the arts in Rwanda,” Kathöfer said.

The Goethe-Institut facilitated Collin’s participation in the East Africa Art Biennale 2009, and has nominated him for the Angola Visual Arts Triennial 2010.    

Collin used objects, essentially "trash”, such as old oil containers, water buckets, and jerry cans, as the materials to create his art work. Thus, making a statement about reusing materials, the environment and how objects that get tossed out by people, might still be incredibly valuable for someone else.

This concept and the variety of forms that he uses are very unique to Rwanda, and is an example of the growth of contemporary art in Rwanda. Collin has already become well known internationally in the US, Canada, and Europe, and his innovation and talent is a testament to his growing popularity.

Kathöfer said that one of the primary mandates of the Goethe-Institut is to promote arts and culture.  "We’re very much looking forward to working with other local artists in our gallery space,” Kathöfer said.

She added that Goethe-Institut also supports the arts in a variety of ways, through professional exchanges with international arts professionals.

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