Abstract
The nexus between Uganda’s contemporary art and politics forms the
overarching theme of this thesis. The trajectory of Uganda’s contemporary art
as a political expression has been retraced. The different political dispensations
which have shaped Uganda’s political art have been analysed. The political
postures and visual symbols Uganda’s contemporary artists have engaged have
been analysed in the context of the wider socio-political discussions which have
shaped, and been shaped by, the country. It has been contended that different
political epochs have invited response from Uganda’s artists since the early-
1940s. Whereas this debate has been attempted by varied scholars, it has not
been rigorously pursued. Formalist discourses seeking to prioritise formal
aesthetics have been engaged; conclusions that after 1986 contemporary
Ugandan art[ists] became apolitical have been made. With emphasis on two
contemporary artists—Fred Kato Mutebi and Bruno Sserunkuuma—this
formalist reading has been decentred; the socio-political relevance of Uganda’s
contemporary art has been retraced and prioritised. It has been argued that
although initially depoliticised through colonial modernity, Uganda’s
contemporary artists have been sensitive to the socio-political conditions
affecting their space and time; issues of governance and service delivery have
preoccupied them albeit in different but often complementary ways.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:wits/oai:wiredspace.wits.ac.za:10539/6856 |
| Date | 31 March 2009 |
| Creators | Kakande, Angelo A. |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | application/pdf, application/pdf |
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