Imigongo
Encyclopedia
Imigongo is an art form popular in Rwanda
that is produced using cow dung
. It is a traditional Rwandan art form made by the women. Often in black & white, and red, popular themes include the spiral and geometric designs that are painted on walls, pottery, and canvass.
During the 1994 Genocide
the skills involved almost disappeared. However, a women’s cooperative on the road to Rusumo in the Eastern Province near Kirehe, has rescued and revived this uniquely Rwandan art form.
Traditionally geometric designs are produced but as the women artists have grown in confidence they have begun to experiment with more modern innovative images that convey the spirit of the Rwandan landscape, its flora and fauna and its people.
The images are produced using cow dung which is put onto wooden boards in spiral and geometric designs. The dung is left to harden and is then decorated using colours made from organic material. The traditional colours are black, white, red, grey and beige-yellow but increasingly other colours are used.
The imigongo images were originally found in Kibungo
inside the walls of huts as "magical" decorations during the 18th century.
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
that is produced using cow dung
Cow dung
Cow dung is the waste product of bovine animal species. These species include domestic cattle , bison , yak and water buffalo. Cow dung is the undigested residue of plant matter which has passed through the animal's gut. The resultant faecal matter is rich in minerals...
. It is a traditional Rwandan art form made by the women. Often in black & white, and red, popular themes include the spiral and geometric designs that are painted on walls, pottery, and canvass.
During the 1994 Genocide
Rwandan Genocide
The Rwandan Genocide was the 1994 mass murder of an estimated 800,000 people in the small East African nation of Rwanda. Over the course of approximately 100 days through mid-July, over 500,000 people were killed, according to a Human Rights Watch estimate...
the skills involved almost disappeared. However, a women’s cooperative on the road to Rusumo in the Eastern Province near Kirehe, has rescued and revived this uniquely Rwandan art form.
Traditionally geometric designs are produced but as the women artists have grown in confidence they have begun to experiment with more modern innovative images that convey the spirit of the Rwandan landscape, its flora and fauna and its people.
The images are produced using cow dung which is put onto wooden boards in spiral and geometric designs. The dung is left to harden and is then decorated using colours made from organic material. The traditional colours are black, white, red, grey and beige-yellow but increasingly other colours are used.
The imigongo images were originally found in Kibungo
Kibungo
Kibungo is a city in Ngoma district in the Eastern Province of Rwanda, and was the capital of the now defunct Kibungo Province.- Kibungo City :Kibungo is located about 100km from Kigali, along the main road to Tanzania...
inside the walls of huts as "magical" decorations during the 18th century.