THIS IS RWANDA
In 1994, from April to July, eight hundred thousand Rwandans were slaughtered by ethnic Hutu extremists. The Rwandan genocide was eceptional in its brutality, in its speed, and in the meticulous organization with which Hutus set out to destroy the Tutsi minority.
Between 1996 and 1997 Tom Bogaert documented the aftermath of this genocide on behalf of the UN Refugee Agency as a Junior Professional Officer sponsored by the Belgian Government.
‘This is Rwanda’ is an ongoing art project that examines a response to the genocide that exceeds the rationality of official state- and multilateral organizations. At the time of writing, ‘This is Rwanda’ consists of video, sculpture, sound, and performance.
Colour your Way (2022)
Screenshot from re-ennactment video.
Low production re-enactment of the 1994 Bronco chase in which O.J. Simpson led police in a low speed chase on a Los Angeles freeway. Filmed from the back of a moto-taxi in Kigali, Rwanda.
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Visit Rwanda (2021)Screenshot from re-ennactment video.
Low production re-enactment of the 1994 Bronco chase in which O.J. Simpson led police in a low speed chase on a Los Angeles freeway. Filmed from the back of a moto-taxi in Kigali, Rwanda.
Installation view CC De Steiger in Menen, Belgium.
Time (2019)16 personalized football shirts.
On the occasion of the 25th commemoration of the 1994 Genocide in Rwanda, Tom Bogaert was invited by Ivuka Arts in the capital Kigali for a solo exhibition of new work. During his time in Rwanda in 2019, the artist made a series of personalized soccer shirts that represent a rudimentary timeline of Rwanda’s recent history.
The T-shirt project is inspired by the Rwanda Development Board £30 million deal to sponsor U.K.’s Arsenal Football Club: the team’s kit now bears the ‘Visit Rwanda’ logo on its left sleeve.
Plaine au Mille Souris (2009)Rubber and steel.
80 x 100 cm.
Plaine au Mille Souris (This is not Rwanda) rejects Malthusian theories stating that the 1994 Rwanda genocide was the preordained result of the impersonal forces of poverty and overpopulation. The mice that overpopulate the picture plane are cast from the licorice candy that is distinct to Belgium and acknowledges Europe’s disastrous influence in African affairs.
In 1798 Thomas Malthus declared that “If there are too many people and not enough food, then, certainly, there are going to be problems […] as nature has a natural way to cut population levels: crime, disease, war, and vice”.
The following is an extract from a report by Human Rights Watch about the genocide in Rwanda:
“The sweetly sickening odor of decomposing bodies hung over many parts of Rwanda in 1994 […] at least half a million people perished […] this genocide was not an uncontrollable outburst of rage by a people consumed by ‘ancient tribal hatreds.’ Nor was it the preordained result of the impersonal forces of poverty and over-population […] This genocide resulted from the deliberate choice of a modern elite to foster hatred and fear to keep itself in power.”
Colline au Mille Souris (2008)Installation view Real Art Ways in Hartford CT, US.
Candy and glue.
200 x 150 x 150 cm.
Black Noise (2008)
Sound installation.
A vinyl record is covered in black licorice mice. As the needle bumps along over their backs, it generates a rhythmic pounding, reminiscent of tribal drumming and machine guns.
During the 1994 Genocide in Rwanda, the extremist radio station Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines used terms such as ‘swarming’ and ‘infestation’ to motivate Hutu killers. Accompanied by a lively mix of entertainment and pop music, death tallies were read out like sports scores.
Black Noise is the technical term for silence.
This is Rwanda (2004), Video 05:42
A short experimental video in which Tom Bogaert embedded footage of the genocide into the interface of a computer game. The film had its world premiere at the International Film Festival of Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
The film can be viewed on request.
Machete (2004) Machete mounted on a Star Wars light saber handle.
67 x 8 x 5 cm.
Prop Bogaert used to make the 'This is Rwanda' video.