DEVERON ARTS

Claudia Zeiske, founder and director of Deveron Arts in Huntly Aberdeenshire Scotland, together with 32° East | Ugandan Art Trust, selected me as the Artist to work on the project we now call Mackay of Uganda. This project will showcase Alexander Mackay. Born in Rhynie Aberdeenshire in 1849, went to Uganda as a young man he left an important legacy for Uganda before he died in 1890. He is remembered in Ugandan History books as one of the people who changed Uganda at the turn of the last century. He is buried in Uganda at Namirembe Cathedral.

Mackay's cave he built to conduct secret meetings and printing parts of the Bible in tough times late1800 as is now

It is interesting to note that the Church Missionary Society which sent Mackay to Uganda did so on the invitation of the King of Buganda Kabaka Mutesa the 1st. also known as Mukabya who had the vision that there was an inevitable wave of change in Africa and his country was ready to embrace it. The rulers of Africa did not have guns, they knew slave trade was evil even though they participated in it and they knew too of a greater force that was coming to engulf their rule as they saw explorers come and go. The Kabaka wanted a sustainable change that would keep him in power while his people embraced the new order. He wrote to Queen Victoria through Stanley the explorer to send Teachers, Engineers, Doctors and skilled people to teach Ugandans the new way of life and Mackay was the man.

2013 celebration 100 years Mackay's Church in Uganda - Martyrs Church

I am in Scotland to find out what made Mackay who he was. As Ham Mukasa said of Mackay "He was an enigma. He was kind but at the same time bad tempered and easily irritable. He was also intelligent and humble, but he at time did things which were difficult to understand. His temperament was multi faced and difficult to understand." Ham Mukasa was one of the Pages at the court of Kabaka Mwanga and a student of Mackay. He survived being one of the Martyrs killed because they had turned against the King and embraced not only Christianity but also Islam.

I am not here to write history but to express it the best way I know. History books both by foreigners and Ugandans, word of mouth stories told in Uganda and Scotland will help me formulate the direction I will take to bring out this Important character of Uganda. He is not well known in Scotland but Deveron Arts has done great work in spreading news of him and the project.

change 1 recycled president Obama campaign literature. Sanaa gateja 2011 10x8ft. 

My own work as an Artist fits in well with the project. I have been working and teaching art in rural and Urban communities in East Africa for 25 years using sustainable materials and exploring traditional Art and Crafts skills as a means of reviving value for things hand made.