The Margaret Trowell School of Industrial and Fine Arts at Makerere University has trained great talent since the 1960s, while more recently a growing number of venues provide showcases for the many new painters and sculptors. From Nommo Gallery in Nakasero, Afriart, Umoja and Asante galleries in Bukoto, Art Punch in Buziga, 320 East in Muyenga, and the trendy Afriart on 7th in Industrial Area for a small city, Kampala punches above it’s weight with a large and interesting art scene.
It’s also very cliquey with groups of artists allying with certain spaces, and certain galleries even pressuring artists into exclusive contracts so they can’t show their work elsewhere. The result is that you have to schlep around to see a range of art – but that can be a fun experience in itself.
When I saw the potential of the art scene, I wanted to create an easy way for people to see all that was on offer. Luckily, the Kenya Arts Diary had provided a great model, showcasing the work of hundreds of artists a wider audience since 2011. With their permission, we took their idea and made the Uganda Arts Diary. In each week of the year, a new artist is profiled next to a picture of their work. You can see the first diaries from 2014 and 2015. Since then the project was taken on by the Ugandan Arts Trust.