Aug. 29, 2019
For Immediate Release

Waterloo – The latest exhibition at Wilfrid Laurier University’s Robert Langen Art Gallery showcases the powerful true stories of women who survived the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. Entitled And I Live On: The Enduring Stories of Rwanda’s Survivors, the photographic series by Canadian photographer and human rights advocate Samer Muscati commemorates the 25th anniversary of the conflict. The exhibition is open to the public from Aug. 26 to Oct. 4.

Muscati, the associate director of Human Rights Watch’s disability rights division, photographed and interviewed genocide survivors over a 10-year span to document their healing and recovery. Despite the unimaginable violence, loss and poverty faced by these women, the exhibition focuses on their remarkable strength and resilience.

“The moment I saw this body of work and met with Samer Muscati, I knew this was an exhibition that needed to be shared with our university community and the public at large,” said Suzanne Lake, curator of the Robert Langen Art Gallery. “The images and accompanying survivor stories illustrate the power of human determination, transformation and hope for the future.”

A lawyer, documentary photographer and former journalist, Muscati was the director of the International Human Rights program at the University of Toronto from 2015 to 2019. Previously, he focused on women’s rights in conflict zones as a senior researcher for Human Rights Watch.

And I Live On is curated by Sarah Milroy, chief curator at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection. The photographs are from the 2019 book And I Live On: The Resilience of Rwandan Genocide Survivors of Sexual Violence.

Members of the public are invited to view And I Live On at the Robert Langen Art Gallery, located in the Laurier Library. The gallery is open from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Friday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends. A public opening reception will be held on Sept. 24 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Admission is free and no registration is necessary.

About the Robert Langen Art Gallery

The Robert Langen Art Gallery is Wilfrid Laurier University’s visual arts centre. Exhibition programs and activities are connected to the university’s curriculum to foster creative thinking, exploration of ideas and community.