Flowers and life blended
May 06, 2004
For Grace Sseremba, a Netherlands-based visual artist, life is one big flower – blissful and beautiful, one worth enjoying and sharing. Indeed, sharing is one of the reasons the seasoned artist decided to hold her first solo exhibition in Uganda.
By Stephen Senkaaba
For Grace Sseremba, a Netherlands-based visual artist, life is one big flower – blissful and beautiful, one worth enjoying and sharing. Indeed, sharing is one of the reasons the seasoned artist decided to hold her first solo exhibition in Uganda.
“I have held several exhibitions in Europe. This time I thought I should exhibit my work at home to share my talent with my countrymen,†she says. But that is not all.
The proceeds from the ongoing exhibition at the German Cultural Centre in Ntinda will go towards the establishment of Nakawa Resource Centre for disadvantaged youth.
Sseremba has befittingly named her exhibition “Floral Formations†not only to portray different flowers, but also to depict her perception of life.
“Where I live (Netherlands), flowers are big business, yet here in Uganda, flowers signify the natural beauty of our country.â€
Using a combination of acrylics, linen, black and white pastels on paper, Sseremba brings out this diversity in purpose well.
Her colour rich semi-realist images depict various landscapes, green tropical thickets and flower gardens both here and in the Netherlands.
In both settings, she brings out the intricate features that make these two countries unique.
While she depicts the Netherlands as a country with tiny but vibrant flower formations whose beauty relies on weather, she shows that Uganda’s flowers are more subdued and less responsive to weather changes.
Whether this trait also applies to people of both countries, Sseremba does not say, but her diverse compositions suggest an insight that goes beyond just the floral formations of the countries to their citizens and culture.
She also explores the wild life and activities in the different settings.
By depicting the floral formations of both countries, she harnesses the rich cultural heritage of both Netherlands and Uganda to portray diversity in values and nature.
This teamed with her rich colour scheme comprising mainly primary colours makes her work stimulating to the eye and betrays her obsession with colour, also reflected in a dress decorated with orange, white, red, yellow and various other colours.
Sseremba’s images of the tropical African rain forests, diverse floral formations bear nostalgic reminders of both countries’ unique beauty. Sseremba might be living thousands of miles away, but as her art reveals, her heart is at home.
For Grace Sseremba, a Netherlands-based visual artist, life is one big flower – blissful and beautiful, one worth enjoying and sharing. Indeed, sharing is one of the reasons the seasoned artist decided to hold her first solo exhibition in Uganda.
“I have held several exhibitions in Europe. This time I thought I should exhibit my work at home to share my talent with my countrymen,†she says. But that is not all.
The proceeds from the ongoing exhibition at the German Cultural Centre in Ntinda will go towards the establishment of Nakawa Resource Centre for disadvantaged youth.
Sseremba has befittingly named her exhibition “Floral Formations†not only to portray different flowers, but also to depict her perception of life.
“Where I live (Netherlands), flowers are big business, yet here in Uganda, flowers signify the natural beauty of our country.â€
Using a combination of acrylics, linen, black and white pastels on paper, Sseremba brings out this diversity in purpose well.
Her colour rich semi-realist images depict various landscapes, green tropical thickets and flower gardens both here and in the Netherlands.
In both settings, she brings out the intricate features that make these two countries unique.
While she depicts the Netherlands as a country with tiny but vibrant flower formations whose beauty relies on weather, she shows that Uganda’s flowers are more subdued and less responsive to weather changes.
Whether this trait also applies to people of both countries, Sseremba does not say, but her diverse compositions suggest an insight that goes beyond just the floral formations of the countries to their citizens and culture.
She also explores the wild life and activities in the different settings.
By depicting the floral formations of both countries, she harnesses the rich cultural heritage of both Netherlands and Uganda to portray diversity in values and nature.
This teamed with her rich colour scheme comprising mainly primary colours makes her work stimulating to the eye and betrays her obsession with colour, also reflected in a dress decorated with orange, white, red, yellow and various other colours.
Sseremba’s images of the tropical African rain forests, diverse floral formations bear nostalgic reminders of both countries’ unique beauty. Sseremba might be living thousands of miles away, but as her art reveals, her heart is at home.