Rwanda Art Museum

I recently visited the Rwanda Art Museum, formerly known as the Presidential Palace Museum, in Kanombe, near Kigali Airport. The museum, built between 1976 and 1980, was once the residence of two presidents between 1980 and 2000, offers a unique glimpse into Rwanda's history and culture. The ground floor exhibition, which featured old pictures from the early colonial period, was a highlight of my visit. The photographs showcased various aspects of life in Rwanda, including fashion, music, social life, and architecture. I was particularly fascinated by the rare color footage from the 1950s movie "King Solomon's Mines," which was shot on location in Rwanda. It's a shame that this exhibition is only temporary, as it provides a valuable insight into Rwandan culture. The top floor of the house is dedicated to contemporary art, but unfortunately, the pieces are not curated or accompanied by explanations, which made it difficult to appreciate their significance. The house itself is impressive, and it's interesting to see what a presidential palace looked like. The gardens are also beautiful, and visitors can explore them at their leisure. For an additional fee, you can visit the closed-off area where the remains of President Habyarimana's aircraft are preserved. Although there's not much to see except for a few plane parts, it's still a poignant reminder of the country's turbulent past. What made my visit truly enjoyable was our knowledgeable guide, who shared many stories about the house and Rwanda's history. The guide's expertise added a rich layer of context to the museum, making the experience even more memorable. Overall, I would recommend visiting the Rwanda Art Museum, especially for its unique exhibitions and historical significance. While some areas of the museum may be lacking in curation or context, the guides are excellent, and the house itself is worth exploring. Tips: - Be sure to check the exhibition schedule, as the ground floor exhibition is temporary. - Consider paying the extra fee to visit the aircraft wreckage, but be aware that it's not an extensive exhibit. - Take your time to explore the gardens and the house, and don't hesitate to ask your guide questions. I hope this review helps, and I look forward to seeing more exhibitions and improvements at the Rwanda Art Museum in the future!

Interesting visit and approach here, the reception staff will guide you through the entire indoor visit. She has asked the question though so you can get guidance or go on your own. I thought it was interesting to have the guide, some of the insight in Rwandan culture was basic while there is so much more to tell so they can increase the learning process especially for first time visitors to Rwanda. The art work is of an interesting diversity yet rather limited in expo still. Definitely interesting to see (at least we can imagine a bit) how the presidents used to live there in a massive house with many facilities and in-house decorations ( and that about 40 y ago and earlier). The 2000 fr extra are worth it to see the parts of the plane that was shot down in 1994 ( who doesn't remember this news), half of them are still in the original spot, the others were moved to that closed section. Interesting thing to observe are the tennis field and open space used for fighting sports coaching, the swimming pool has not been restored which could be a nice extra for the local community.

I was there in the evening for an exhibition and wished I had come during the day to appreciate the compound as well. Great work done by the team there. Great place to visit at a reasonable fee.

The museum has so many paintings and art from many local artists. It was interesting how we had to remove our shoes to get in, at least the time we went there, so it would be nice to go there with socks. It's 1500, to visit the museum and 10k to visit both the museum and the plane crush site ( my opinion it's not worth it) The time we visited there was no kids activity but there's a room for kids to color, paint which is good. It will be great to call in advance if you want to take your kids there. My kids enjoyed running outside. It is also a good venue for weddings, and there was a tennis court.

Very cool history of Rwanda. Highly recommend a guided tour. For $2 more, you can buy a ticket to see the crashed plane of the former president. Our group thought it was worth it to get the extra perspective!

The Rwanda Art Museum in Kicukiro offers a unique view into Rwanda's cultural heritage with its collection of traditional and contemporary art. Housed in a historic building, the museum provides visitors with an engaging experience of Rwanda's history through its beautiful paintings, sculptures, and crafts. A must-visit for those interested in Rwandan culture.

This museum is fairly new, but there's still a lot to see and learn. We're not allowed to take photos inside so you'll have to go and enjoy it yourself.

The place opened my eyes to art in Rwanda. This visit and the guidance and explanations of the tour guide made the place come alive, I felt sad, happy, scared and joy all just by immersing my self in the stories told by the arts. Please ask about the art depicting the story of Mugarura, Enjoy :-) . FYI, check the pic with announcements, one in particular, you have to remove your shoes before going inside the house.