WILLY KAREKEZI is a multidisciplinary artist & founder of Indiba Arts Space and currently residing in Kigali. A believer in human interactions, his art seeks the understanding and study of identity in the contemporary world and to provoke conversations on the impacts of our choices. This interest and concepts are inspired through his own journey, to observe his surroundings and narrate the feelings in navigating the environment and illuminate the changing nature of life and the conditions experienced by people. His style is expressionism merged with healthy doses of realism, steeped in contemporary dialogue. His work is intended to be thought provoking, raise the collective consciousness and share the deep emotions of how we all try to fit in somewhere. Words are often embedded in his art, serving as a symbol of the unspoken, unseen and forgotten values in our current realities, and also represents how we are pushing the boundaries of communication. Through educational programs and working within refugee camps in Rwanda and Uganda, he also contributes financially and emotionally through workshops, exhibitions and installations. To name a selection of these, Willy has worked with the Moleskine Foundation, American Refugee Committee, UNHCR, European Youth Exchange Project and Kinderfreunde Austria. His work has been exhibited worldwide in solo and group exhibitions in the National Museum of Uganda; The Oglethorpe University Museum of Art in Atlanta; Green Circle - pool7, Vienna; Sprachsalon Berlin; and the London School of Economics and Political Science. He has participated in Artist residencies in 32 degrees East, Uganda; KAN Artivist in Residency, Tanzania; Nafasi Arts Residency, Tanzania; and Bongo Hub, Germany.

Artist Statement 

Working on myself is the hardest thing that I have ever done and the most important job I have ever got. On this journey where I face myself - I try to focus on my discipline and creativity, to rediscover and grow as a visual artist, and also as a way to to heal my inner self and restore from the altered behaviours and changed character. This exhibition is a way to reconnect with myself and this is not an easy process. In my work, the subjects you’ll see are primarily women, who signify the missing fragment of my life. When I’m painting I’m always trying to recreate the story and imagine a life with this restored and how that would affect my identity and how I perceive my reality. Painting one canvas a day was easy and hard; from the inspired days and flow of the creation, to the refocus on the difficult days when I was down and low, while allowing the intensity of emotions and the difference of experiences to show in the work. It is really good to see the outcome of it, because I created these stories with different energies; some are deep from my story, some are from finding myself and adapting the style I use, and some from inspiration from my friends and the reality around me.