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Okudiizagubamwoyo

Deveron Arts PROJECT REPORT

I came to Huntly,Scotland as artist in residence on the invitation of Deveron Arts assisted by Ugandan Arts Trust.The residence was an artistic exploration that sought to interrogate the miscommunication that occurs when languages,religions and philosophies are translated then re-translated as well as create a dialogue and stimulate debate on a difficult issue:post colonial ownership and empowerment of the colonized.

'Okudizagubamwoyo' is a Lugandan saying that literally means 'to give back is a human virtue'. This was juxtaposed to contextualize the role of a missionary, like Mackay, in the invasion and eventual destabilization of entire traditionsand cultural fabrics of the communities they came in contact with.These seemingly innocent acts by missionaries like Mackay(a man of great character) have had dire consequences on communities for more than a hundred years.The paradoxical abandonment of religion in Mackay's birth place and its colossal impact and continued presence in Africa is the very essence of this inquisitiveness. What happened? What went wrong? Maybe we can give it back.The interrogation process has just started and will go on way after the residence has ended more especially in Uganda where a mere thought of these questions brands you blasphemous.

Having visited Mackay’s birth place,the historical significance may be obscured but the foundation for divergent views has been laid.The context shall no longer be unidirectional.The people of Scotland and Uganda must sit on the same table and agree to disagree.

ENGAGEMENT WITH THE SCOTTISH PEOPLE:

  • On my arrival, Martyr Day,3 June 2014,I met the staff of Deveron Arts and immediately started my engagement with Huntly with a Martyr performance on Huntly Square.
  • The following day I went with Mr Sanaa to the primary school in Rhynie to teach the children some Luganda songs.
  • I went to the Brownies with Catrin Jeans where we made necklaces inspired by African images.
  • I twice went to the Gordon Schools Art department where I introduced my work, the Mackay project and held a Graffiti workshop with the senior class.I also did a poetry and spoken word performance.
  • I interacted with the youth at the Linden centre where I performed some spoken word and rap.I taught them how to rap in Lugandan while standing in a circle and later conducted a graffiti workshop.
  • After a week, I was humbled when I was called back to award certificates to all participating youth.I held a summer Graffiti class which resulted in the pattern for missionary money.
  • I performed at the Tin Hut and Summer Ceilidh evening.
  • I toured the town collection with a group of 25 aged people and made a performance 'Tied Up' which was my continuation on the discourse of the impact of missionaries on communities.
  • I met and had a discussion with Dudendance,a dance collective involved in performance.We talked about a future collaboration.
  • I went to Aberdeen and was welcomed by Jason one of the curators of the Aberdeen Art gallery who gave me an invitation to KaffeFasset's 50 years in colour Exhibition.It was so successful with many people in the Scottish Art world in attendance.I met Kaffe and networked with a number of Artists and designers.
  • I traveled to Edinburgh to meet Claudia who took me to the Fruitmarket gallery and the National Museums of Scotland.She later introduced me to Dr Sarah Worden the curator of the African section who took me on a tour of African galleries and later booked me a Ticket to see the Ming Exhibition.
  • The following day I went with Claudia to Creative Scotland, visited a number of Galleries and the famous Marble Steps.
  • I have thrice appeared in the Huntly Express News paper and was filmed by a German TV crew when they visited Scotland.

PERFORMANCES AND INSTALLATIONS.

MUJULIZI

I had just arrived in Huntly,3rd June 2014. I hada talk with Claudia and the Deveron Arts team.From the conversation,Claudia mentioned that it was Martyrs day in Uganda and asked if I could do something.I,on intuition, thought of a performance about alone Martyr walking to the altar to be burnt.The performance was meant to begin a dialogue and instigatedebate.How would people relate or interpret this surreal invasion of their space.What does all this mean? Do Huntly people know that martyrs day is a huge phenomenon in Uganda;started by their very own Mackay! Many people in the square reacted to the performance and seemed to ponder on their own spirituality.It was written about in The Huntly Express.This performance will inspire a series of performances back in Uganda.The resulting video will be used as a video installation in Uganda and elsewhere.

ENSWA EBUSE NENVUBO

I arrived at the tail end of SanaaGateja's residency. Some of the earlier concepts we had discussed in Uganda had taken a new direction.I wanted to give the performance on the TapO'Noth an abstract narrative that could have multiple interpretations.The concept was inspired by the Ant (Enswa) and the Anthill.Ants are some of the most organised creatures living in harmony with nature.Humans harvest them by setting up a trap(Nvubo) which they build around the main entrances to the Anthill. Some ants will fall into the trap while others will escape into space.I wanted to interrogate the concept of the missionary coming to the highly organised kingdom of Buganda with it's own highly sophisticated belief systems and then try to trap them with their own philosophy of a supposedly superior religion.

The day ended with a costume parade of visibly enslaved or traumatized models hinting on religion's inclination towards obsession.The contextual spoken word/rap performance was that of a street preacher

PILGRIMAGE

I joined the members of the Christ church for a pilgrimage.We walked from Christ church along the Deveron river to the cemetery.I did a site specific performance between the gates.The gate and its wall divided the graves and the pilgrims.Wrapped in bark cloth,I lay down in between the centre of the gates simultaneously closing the gates.The imagery was that of a human in the mode of near death questioning the relevance of religion and it's relation to the after life.The complexity of that psychedelic occurrence between life and death,the inevitable separation between the living and the dead was the emotion that I wanted the pilgrims to meditate upon.What does life mean? Is your belief system superior to others or is it the ultimate answer?

ZIZINGA MU CHOIR.

This was a performance at the address to the haggis (normally a Burns poem); with a German TV company NDR present.'Zizinga' loosely translated from Luganda could mean saboteur,chaos or disharmony in a choir.I wanted to play with the notion of cultural invasion and distortion which I believe was a key ingredient in the work of missionaries.In this performance, I stood next to the addressee (in German) and acted on behalf of the Haggis protested being'captured' and 'eaten' and contesting some of burn's poetic statements.To a staunch Scottish traditionalist,this could seem bizarre and could be termed as cultural imperialism.

KAKOKOLO

The audience of the summer ceilidh was treated to a gripping and deeply tense performance of spoken word and Lugaflow(Rap in Luganda).It was performed in collaboration with Harris Williamson,a young drummer from Rhynie who interpreted the words into beats.'Kakokolo' could mean man in a mask or sometimes it couldmean a scare crow used to scare away birds during harvest season.It was used here in the context of obscured identity.The essence wasto evoke the emotion of what it would feel like for someone to insanely invade your sane space in a language you don't easily fathom.The performance had many layers one of which was 'giving back in the same spirit'.The other could be the hidden or masked agenda of the missionaries and those who sent them.

The performance took place at the Huntly traditional evening.

ABAJULIZI.

The farmers Market in the square was the venue of the Fashion installation and parade.The Deveron Arts stall was decoratedwith Bark cloth, reeds and raffia to give an organic backdrop to the installation.The project involved seven young models parading in costumes and finally forming an installation next to the Deveron Arts stall.The costumes were poetic narratives meant to capture the nostalgic feelings surrounding the fate of the Uganda martyrs.The Uganda Martyrs were Mackay's converts that were killed on the orders of the King for failing to denounce Christianity.This same emotion is conveyed by families of the converts.On a deeper level they orchestrate the mental imprisonment and enslavement of the converts.The sound track to the installation was provided by Cait Lennox,a young Huntly violin player.

PILGRIM TO MACKAY'S BIRTH PLACE(Reverse journey along Bogie River)

My last activity was to re-enact andre-trace the Mackay journey.Going through the physical and mental stress andthe fatigue, while embracing the spirit of adventure was at the core of this expedition.Going into the known unknown and not knowing what to expect or encounter was fundamental in trying to capture the youthful energy thatcould have inspiredMackay's adventure into the 'Darkland'.With a boat made out of bamboo and wrapped with a piece of barkcloth printed with the Mackay pattern and white 'helpers',this pilgrimage was a direct comment on the not so often asked question as to whether Mackay and other missionaries used Slaves on their journeys.Would they have managed on their own? If the helpers were not slaves,were they remunerated? What was the agenda? Why would someone risk their lives to go into obscure dungeons? Was colonialism at the heart of the undertaking or was there a capitalistic sentimentality? These are tough questions that need to be asked.Answers may not be availed anytime soon but they will set the tone for the interrogation process.Thank God my partners in this 'pilgrimic' crime were willing enthusiasts.

Thank you,Joss,Katie,Ricardo.

OUTCOME

Three performance videos have been realized.These can be staged as video installations in any space anywhere.

The project will continue in Uganda and the overall outcome will be published as an art Book and Video document.A performance art piece inspired by 'Mujulizi',will be enacted during Uganda martyrs day 2015.A series of activities,events and exhibitions will follow.I will continue working with Deveron Arts and Ugandan Arts Trust to further develop the project.