In this new category of articles, Startjournal.org will present the Story Behind an Artwork. We will be interviewing leading East African visual artists about one particular work of art, trying to explain their reasons for and struggles with creating that one piece of art. First out is the Ugandan watercolor master Taga Francis Nuwagaba and his recent painting ’Changing Kampala’ (watercolor on paper, 2011) .
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Author: start
Between the 16th and the 18th September, the National Theater and Dewington Road next to it will be a riotous blaze of sound, colour, fashion and the spoken word: The Bayimba Festival is coming to town. But the Bayimba Cultural Foundation is so much more than an annual festival. In this article, Bayimba explains why they host cultural workshops, fund artists, and initiate industry discussions.
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In this essay Dr. Angelo Kakande reviews The Early Years: Paintings from the Collection, 1960s-Mid 1980. He places it in Uganda’s history since 1958. In the process he revises some of the positions taken by its organisers; while he questions others. He demonstrates and argues that a contemplation of the wider context of Uganda’s social, economic and political history, which is embodied in some of the works on show, reveals not simply a failed past, but also a pathetic presence and an uncertain political future.
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The brand named Ronex is built upon continuous experimentation. Every waking hour – and sometimes during sleep – his brain is working on extracting the images from within, discovering artwork he didn’t know that he kept inside. He moves in all kind of directions, and hides away his finished work because he fears making copies.
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The 5th LaBa! Street Art Festival was a slight improvement from the past four and if the organizers are determined to make improvements again next year, we are destined for another fabulous day of color, creativity and fun.
Read More >>“Cultural diversity finds its amplification in the knowledge of languages. Art is not reserved for a small circle of people. Art is for everyone.” Samuel Lutaaya explores the relation between Art and Language using the recent LaBa! Street Art Festival as a backdrop.
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The fifth Laba! Street Festival showcased a great variety of Ugandan artists; visual and performing artists, every single one eager to display and offer their creations to the passing spectator. Startjournal presents three artists with different reasons to create art as a living.
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“In moving an entire audience to the central feeling of the piece, the pianist communicates humanity more than anything else, transcending both time and space to speak to the eternal awareness in each person. Long after the show has ended, the moment that occurred is burned into memory as a thing of utmost meaning.” Serubiri Moses portrays Kiggundu Musoke before and during a piano performance.
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A talented and multidimensional artist in his own right, Michael Ouma has been there and done that and lived to play the tune. His insight into music is almost legendary and gives one the sense that he plays from a totally otherworldly place compared to his peers. His passion for music and his desire to see the day when Uganda’s music and its instruments are recognized globally fuel his daily pursuit to become better at what he does.
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Ugandan artists must be passionate students of Ugandan tribal cultural norms and values, artifacts, material culture, and oral history if they are to win back their much needed relevance. Artists should go ‘native’, then perhaps it would be more interesting for the local language newspapers to write about visual arts. Sane sums up some discussion points after an Art Forum at Goethe Zentrum.
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In May newly elected parliamentarians were sworn in amidst colourful cultural performances from all over Uganda. How significant that across the road from them, the theme “We don’t care about Ugandan arts and culture” was discussed at the 2nd Annual Conference on Arts and Culture. Several speakers tried to prove the audience that we do need to care. But the question arises; will art ever be put on the agenda of politicians if we merely consider it to be part of our every day life as the speakers illustrated. And what are the underlying challenges?
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Almost twenty years ago, Fred Mutebi decided to take printmaking in Uganda to another level. Today, no printmaker carves out the lines with such a strength and importance as Mutebi does. In a unique way he captures stunning, evocative images of unpleasant day-to-day scenes. Start talks to Fred Mutebi about his passion for subject matter.
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Fred Mutebi’s recent exhibition “Fred Mutebi: Woodcut collection since 2000” at Afriart Gallery was his first in Kampala in 10 years. The artwork displayed was a testament to the skill and creativity that he continues to develop as a printmaker, artist, and social activist. Lesli Robertson reviews some of the highlights.
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In the midst of the proliferation of entertainment joints extolling the virtues of “baby take off your clothes’’ music, a remarkable revolution of poetry is taking place, in the Kampala suburb of Kira Road, at a gallery called Isha’s Hidden Treasures. What started last November with an audience of 15 people has now turned into a much-anticipated meeting of minds. Achola Rosario reviews the event.
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Curation can be described as the sorting and presentation of work/art for presentation to an audience. Its role is pivotal to the reception of work from the artist or gallery to the target audience, and it plays a major role in the success or failure of selling work. Photographer Roshan Karmali gives you some key ideas if you want to curate your own artwork.
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David Oduki, the co-founder of Royal African Foundation, attended the opening of the exhibition “Let Us Share Beauty” in Utrecht, the Netherlands. “Local galleries in Uganda should be aware of global trends and adapt exhibitions to those trends. They also should promote the likes of Collin Sekajugo and explain their recycling message to the local public,” David Oduki tells Startjournal.
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Collaborative thinking can help foster creativity. If the collective works the right way, a group studio has great potential to help visual artists bring out more original and exciting ideas. Why not learn from the best in the creative field; Pixar Studio.
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Whether as a proprietor of @rt Punch Studios, or as a painter, or sculptor, or clothing designer, or as a teacher, Wasswa Donald’s full-bore involvement in the Uganda art scene as one of Uganda’s top contemporary artists frequently earns praise, but it’s his wildlife paintings that provoke the most discussion.
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The students of Nagenda International Academy of Art and Design recently held an exhibition entitled ”Art the mirror of our politics” at the Makerere Art Gallery. What makes their work different and unique is that it has been produced and exhibited in the very same period when election exercises are still going on at the lower levels and people’s memories on these elections are still fresh in their mind.
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In this creative technique, Jjuuko Hoods will show you how to prepare a piece of bark cloth with a mixture of charcoal powder, sweet potato leaves and acrylic paints.
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