Established since 2012, Rwanda Arts Initiative is a non-profit structure aimed at contributing to the professionalization of the creative industry in Rwanda and the sub-region, by developing step by step a platform integrating training, advocacy, production and dissemination mechanisms.
RAI believes that the creative industry can contribute substantially to the socio-economic development of Africa as a wealth-generating sector through sustainable job creation, economic diversification and cultural valorization.
Rwandan tradition is intimately linked with the use of natural fibers in all aspects of daily life, regardless of social class. This use has been superseded by the use of plastic and imported products. Environmental concerns have encouraged designers to revisit their heritage to find tomorrow's solutions and plant fibers are at the top of the list. Beyond a simple ecological concern, the know-how around fibers are guardians of a sacred aestheticism, a true national identity. Through this presentation, we want to share a fragment of Rwandan history but also this aesthetic long ignored while responding to the concerns of contemporary design.
