BIO

Daudi Kaggwa, born in 1995 in Kampala, Uganda is a contemporary artist residing and working in Nairobi, Kenya. He graduated from the University of Cape Town with a Bachelor in Fine Art (Hons) with a background in photography and sculpture. He is currently studying for a Master in Fine Art at the Royal College of Art. Interested in abstraction as a form of visual storytelling and paying close attention to colour and composition, Kaggwa’s current form of expression is primarily painting.

His practice is marked by a representational visual language using a modish colour pallet and a strong conceptual foundation. Kaggwa’s work focuses on the relationship between memory, imagination, and colour from a universal and contemporary perspective. This concept of painting as an extension of the mind has been explored throughout art history, from the Surrealists who sought to access the subconscious through their work, to the Abstract Expressionists who used painting to channel their emotions onto the canvas. Echoing the practice of the Impressionists, who sought to capture the fleeting effects of light and atmosphere in their paintings, this work focuses on the space in between, capturing fleeting moments both experienced and imagined. His work draws upon the colour field painters of the mid-20th century; these artists believed that colour had the power to evoke emotional and otherworldly experiences in the viewer, and sought to create immersive environments with their paintings. Kaggwa’s intention is for the viewer to look beyond the surface and concentrate on the emotion and the atmosphere with which thoughts occur and memories are evoked; to the simplicity of the colours generated in any mental exercise. Each piece is an extension of the mind, concentrating on tonal relationships between colours and adjusting the ratios to achieve a desired effect in close relation to the imagined space. 

Kaggwa has worked as the creative manager for Circle Art Gallery in Nairobi, Kenya. The Ugandan artist has participated in solo and group exhibitions in Kenya and South Africa.