A vibrant art scene in Uganda mirrors African boom as more collectors show interest

A growing list of artists in Uganda is contributing to a feeling among curators of an exciting moment for art in the East African country

KAMPALA, Uganda -- Lilian Nabulime hasn’t forgotten the time in the 1990s when the Ugandan capital had just one commercial art gallery, a small space that emerging artists struggled to get into.

Now, there are at least six in Kampala, including one whose curator recently exhibited the sculptor’s contrarian work.

Nabulime’s show, which has attracted audiences for its conspiratorial take on the peculiarities of urban “gossip,” might never have happened if she hadn’t approached Xenson Art Space and asked for the opportunity to exhibit her work. Her work includes terracotta works topped with the deformed facial features of gossip bearers.

“Nobody ever comes to me and says, ’Oh, can we show your work?” she said, sitting amid her sculptures. “For me, I just decided and said, ‘Let me go and exhibit my work.’ I asked for the exhibition, and they gave me the space.”

Her solo show, which will last until Dec. 20, exemplifies an expanding artistic landscape that allows more room for local artists who once struggled for space. Nabulime, who teaches sculpture at a prestigious art school in Kampala, is among a growing list of artists whose body of work contributes to a feeling among curators of an exciting moment for Ugandan art.