Saint Galilaya, 2019

Ocom Adonias

Ocom Adonias was born in 1989 in Kireka, on the outskirts of Kampala.

Growing up in a city suburb that has meager resources and a heavy population; a typical feature of many fast growing African cities, coincidentally impacted his art career later on in life. Ocom went to Margaret Trowel School of Industrial and Fine Art, Makerere, (Uganda) and majored in Sculpture, Painting (watercolor) and Photography.  After graduation in 2014, he spent one year and a half as a photographer with Megapix- a local events company. This experience is still visible in his art.

With a background in multi-media, the artist’s present work is largely a combination of the three: photography, sculpture, and painting. In his paintings, the artist works essentially with paper collage; a critical metaphor to his humble background that is characterized by the notion of recycling. Everything in these modest settlements is reused and nothing is thrown away because there’s no privilege to buy something new. Also, through collage the artist is ironically giving the waste-material a new body or form.

Ocom originally a painter of portraiture had his art career switched on when he featured in Surface 2017 (a biannual conceptual development workshop at Afriart Gallery Kampala). That experience changed his art and challenged him to get back to something that defines him. The paintings he produces today 'Who’s your Saint series' evoke personal struggles and challeng...

Afriart Gallery

Afriart Gallery is a focal point of Kampala’s artistic community and provides a wonderful space to experience the exquisite art of Uganda. The gallery was founded in 2002 and has presented contemporary art for the past 15 years.

Afriart is a leading private art gallery in Uganda focusing on the promotion of contemporary art from Uganda and the East African region as well as forging collaborations among artists in Africa and beyond. It seek to enrich the knowledge of visitors about contemporary African art and provide the most varied selection for the enthusiastic art collector in the gallery’s permanent collection.

Apart from exhibitions Afriart has launched some exciting products and initiatives, such as a members art lounge on 7th, an art shop, art consultancies, interior design and professional framing services. Afriart Gallery focuses on exhibiting the best contemporary art in Uganda and have launched many artists’ careers, some of whom are now internationally acclaimed. Their works have been represented by Afriart in major international exhibitions, art auctions, art biennales, and art fairs.

The new space, Afriart on 7th, is offering more to the art community through a large gallery space, a members’ lounge, and a library. The gallery is able to offer this space as an opportunity for artists and curators to experiment, push the boundaries of their practice, and by so doing, contribute audaciously to Uganda’s cultural discourse.


Afriart Gallery Kira Rd
Block 56
Kenneth Dale Drive (off Kir...