Colin Sekajugo is a Ugandan artist born in 1980; he identifies himself as a Rwandan Ugandan visual artist. He is a self-taught Ugandan Rwandan artist born in Masaka, Uganda. He lives and works in Rwanda and he is the founder of Ivuka Arts in Kigali, Rwanda, and went ahead and founded the Weaver Birds Arts Community in Uganda. He has been to over 15 countries for his artistic tours, and he returned to Rwanda in early 2007 with a mission to “use arts to change lives”.
Ivuka Arts is the first contemporary arts center in Rwanda. Its mission is to build through arts and feed the soul with creativity by providing youths with skills, exposure, and a platform for them to succeed and be the next Rwandan ambassador for the next generation.
As the founder of the Weaver Birds Community in Uganda, Sekajugo looks for artists all over East Africa to transform a small village outside of Masaka town into a community of the arts and creativity and a tourism hub for East Africa. The main aim of Weaver Birds Community is to bridge a gap between arts and the community.
Over the past 10 years, Sekajugo's work has been a reflection of his social conscience focusing on the link between art and the community that includes the desire for social transformation in Africa.
Sekajugo's art is about social morality and restoration. He promotes consciousness for subjects that breakdown our societies, from discrimination to environmental change, segregation, and disintegration, and also aims to raise awareness about modern struggles in the society. With his work, he grows concepts on the fundamentals that shape or destroy our societies. The message that is portrayed in his creation is a demonstration for community transformation, bringing together different identities that build a bond for our shared principles as a people.
Sekajugo has traveled extensively around the world showcasing his versatile work or participating at different unique events; it ranges from paintings to mixed media to performance. His artwork holds the peculiarity of being exhibited in various public and corporate gatherings and has been featured in different galleries in East Africa, South Africa, Japan, Europe, and the USA. Most importantly, his artwork is permanently displayed at the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art in Washington D.C., and it holds a distinctive look to include other private and corporate collections around the world.
