UGANDA: ART AND LITERATURE

Ugandan art, like most African art, was mostly overlooked by the Western art world until the 20th century. The earliest art consisted mainly of rock drawings and roughly carved heads and other sculptures. Essentially, utility and functionality was key to these early traditions, putting their artistic touch into tools like baskets, ceramic pottery, jewelry design, batik staining on fabric, and other utensils used in the home.

Pretty sure this is what I'll look like coming out of quarantine.

Today, art is an important part of their cultural expression. And while Ugandan art in the past hasn’t been an area of focus as a modern movement, there is more of a push on a national level to encourage people to join in and be more creative, to create more art and tell their stories.

by Fred Mutebi

One of the most well-known artists from Uganda is Fred Mutebi. He graduated from college in Kampala and then took a Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence at a university in Memphis, Tennessee. Mutebi is known for creating these multi-color woodcut pieces of art that depict important scenes from Uganda’s history or portraying its landscape. Another well-known artist is Geoffrey Banadda. His style of painting is characterized by a sleek style yet abstract. As a different kind of artist, Raymond Nsereko uses other mediums like fabrics of different materials and designs.

by Geoffrey Banadda

It’s difficult to find information on literature in Uganda prior to Europeans moving into this area of Africa. I imagine it was mainly oral stories: parable-like cautionary tales, riddles, and histories, passed down from generation to generation. For the most part, I believe, written literature didn’t really get off the ground until the 20th century, if not just prior to this perhaps for a few lucky souls.

Today, I think most literature is probably published in English, but perhaps it’s published in both English and Swahili versions. One of the books that I saw mentioned quite a bit is Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi’s 2014 novel Kintu. It tells the story of Bagunda history, intertwined with doses of mythology, sexism, curses, and drama. It’s won several awards, and I’m happy to find that it’s available on Amazon and the Kindle store for only $10.99, so I might get it once I finish a few books in my queue.

Another book that popped up several times is the 1998 novel Abyssinian Chronicles by Moses Isegawa. This book tells a coming-of-age story just prior to Uganda’s independence and how the family moves to Kampala just as Idi Amin takes power. Initially supportive of Amin, they quickly realize what a monster of a leader he really is. This one is also available for the Kindle for $12.99, so I might add this one in as well.

Up next: music and dance