Lugbara Art

After the Almighty GOD (who art in Heaven), the other best things in life are three: Agriculture, Architecture and Art = Grow, Build and Create (Others may say it's Women, Arsenal and Computers or Marriage, Entertainment and Money; Faith, Hope and Love; Family relationships, Fitness health and Freedom to choose; Work, Work, Work; etc). No Agric, no life! Architecture is a form of Fine Art but it stands alone because of its spacious size, accommodative usefulness plus longevity like (architect Joel Aita's) Arua Hill Stadium and Business Park. Personally, I define Art as a plethora of creative GOD-given talents and skills expressed through works which can be appreciated by any of our (five or six) senses for example paintings, BIGAMBO or talents are seen eg Messi, music is heard like Hillsong Worship, sculptures and carpentry are touched, food is tasted by the tongue for instance namungodi [rice mandazis] while perfumes and aromas are smelt. Meanwhile, thought vibrations (or intentions) are felt in the spirit.

Pennamed Aiko (shortened from Ayiko meaning "Happiness" in Lugbara), my Art is a life of "GOD, ink (or paint), sweat and cheers"; I do it for ma Suru [my Country]. Turn your pains into pain-tings, losses into less-ons, problems into poems, heartbreaks into Artbreaks, rejections into redirections, criticism into realism and messes into messages! What doesn't kill you only makes you two-times-stronger, which is actually antifragility like Hydra. Do not ignore your dreamvisions, focus on your goals and hustle like artpreneurs do, but sleep and rest well too plus rehydrate! Where I come from, Happy-iness is spelt with the letter Y: Without YESU, no joy! No JESUS, no Heaven! 'Tis so sweet to trust in JESUS! Success is getting what you want while Happiness is enjoying success, but Double Happy-iness is wanting what you get, whatever is meant for you; good or bad. Art translated to my mother tongue is Wura. I started my Art journey in Jinja by penciling stickpeople and animals, then added flesh by P3, struggled to reproduce 3D perspectives in KLA City, studied calligraphy as well as fonts on my own after being beaten by my mother for "poor handwriting", wasn't taught Art as a class subject in P7 but discovered how newspapers are made in a textbook borrowed for a holiday from Doro (Itesot-Indian halfbreed), discovered painting, couldn't afford acrylic paints nor brushes, was doubted by some schoolmates but finally discovered the euphoria of superfocus while using only ballpoint pens for drawing during Y2K at SMACK after a Bob Marley assignment by my desk neighbour Sato (Fullname: Jean Rwamukaga aka Kaahwa); I emancipated my portraitmaking from pencil slavery. The following year, I dropped out of the Fine Art Class at Macos, was blocked by the Technical Drawing teacher (with tears in my eyes) from joining his TD students but the 5HEL Combination classmonitor Arshad Ahmed kept me busy practising my drawing skills (One of his three elder brothers named Arfaan also got me KADS Uganda theatrical set design backdrop-painting jobs displayed at Uganda National Cultural Centre aka National Theatre). Later in 2001, I met a beautiful, Queen Sheebah-like brownskinned girl in Arua who spoke Lugbara so fluently at a tender age that she inspired me to re-study the vernacular more diligently on my own. I had a big crush on her (she conquered me), but kept quiet about it because of her age (6-11) though fondly addressed her as Xnthi (meaning unlimited number like infinity). I only worship one GOD in Heaven but Xnthi was soulfully divine and powerful like a Kumari goddess on Earth (I respected her highly even if I was 11 years older than her: One morning she stunned me when she confessed that she liked me because I treated her better than other people who belittled her). Maybe love is a crime, but I will not block the Beautyful One from manifesting her own destiny! To deal with my indestructible obsession, I snapped on the 3rd Agofe's 90th birthday (Saturday 26th November 2016) and dedicated an online Lugbara Dictionary to her plus featured the "dope and perfect" oku [woman] in my own renditions of ancient masterpieces as well as new creations eg Lugbara With A Pearl Earring (2021 Portrait), Superhot, She Wore A Green Attire (SWAGA 2024), etc. Meanwhile, Em - a supercalm campus melody from Kigezi (who used to therapeutically address me as "Boyfriend" between 4th to 6th semester) told me there is "no reason to stop" when I wanted to quit drawing; I guess creativity never ends. The Standard Newspaper at UCU Mukono Campus gave me a GODsent platform to archive my cartoonworks since Monday 7th May 2007 (Actually my Big Brother's 33rd birthday anniversary) and I also got a one month stint at Sunday Vision around December 2010 (The New Vision artwork on weekdays was unluckily given to a proven Etop [Vision Group's Ateso language newspaper] contributor in Soroti which almost depressed me in the end like a demonic dark cloud of failure above my head, but I found a way out of it by appreciating the bi-monthly UCU Standard more). My upbeat Art manager Edmund from Lyantonde also got me some gigs, then I moved to Arua where my brother-in-law Emmyways invited me to paint at his Springs schools. I've created blogs, videos, translated Lugbara, painted signposts and drawn a number of logos plus book illustrations. The initial AikoGraphics product mission list in 2003 included only: Advertisements, Logos, Portraits, Posters and Badges but I can offer more than that today as evidence of skill development. My artworks have been displayed on and within various buildings from MTAC Nakawa in 2007 to Prime Impex Building on Jinja Road, Springs Kindergarten (Arua) since 2017, Arua Central Market 2021, etc. During the Covid-19 Ugandan lockdown, poet Lindsay Hames in Kansas (USA) inspired me to use more layers and brushes while colouring my tradigital Art. Old campus fellow Rachael Nakanwagi Nsamba in Seeta (Mukono) mentioned me on Facebook (1st September 2020) as "one of the Best Cartoonists" she knows when comedian Patrick Idringi (aka Salvado) asked his friends to suggest a cartoonist for an upcoming project; it was very uplifting though unexpected - had somehow tried to hide from Raq! Then in November 2020, a Ugandan actress (who is also a director, producer, fitness trainer and TV presenter) named Maureen Nankya (Jolly, better known as Mona) asked me to draw cartoon characters of the cast in her TV series (The Office) to premiere on Top TV and while preparing to draw the third portrait (which happened to be Ugandan actress Jackline Katusiime), I had some sort of Aha (Eureka) moment which sparked me to redraw the first two I had earlier inked and improved their quality. My Covid-19 lockdown Epiphany inspired me to coin the portmanteau "Ugatoons" which is cut from Ugandan cartoons as a Fine Art movement of renewal. What do you do when you run out of motivation, zeal, gusto, oomph, zest, fire, willpower, driving force, passion, hunger, passion, ava [interest], anointing oil or fuel? You have to question why you do Art! Why do you wake up every morning? What is your real calling, vocation or profession? Overwork, non-payment and underpayment fatigue can cause you to burn out like charcoal becoming ash, but you need a reason for drawing that lasts longer than normal like volcanic rocks or anthill-soil + paper-pulp brickets. My help comes from GOD who gives me all my gigs; Commitment (Grit, Longtime Perseverence, Clear Direction, Mental Toughness, Daily Practice, Never-give-up Stay scheming Attitude) is a discipline that keeps you going and improving even when there are no financial papers (or money, money, money; legal tender; numbers) nor any other incentives. Afterall, GOD gives the talents, all we do is apply them. I wouldn't mind if AikoGraphics is listed alongside Pierre Pierre, Black Broadcast plus A&E Europe: My mission to create world-class Art as a Black kicked off with the label Atelier [French for Studio] in 2001, then Imitari [Latin for Portrait] in 2002 before the name AikoGraphics descended to me in February 2003 while walking back home on Mt. Wati Road (Anyafio Village, Arua). Within a year, I had discovered that the same name was also used in Nippon (ie Japan) by Nikki Aham and Oregon (USA) where the Nike swoosh originated. Creativity is definitely spiritual and universal, without imaginary borders. You need Talent, Imagination, Motivation and Endurance (TIME). The funniest thing about Art is that you can make something out of nothing (like the 8th Day of Creation). Self un-employment is a choice. Complaining about joblessness is a byproduct of Ovu [Laziness]; just do what you want to do even when unpaid like pro bono publico at the start or receiving negative responses, abuse, ridicule and hate! The rewards and profits will find you in their own time. Marathon runners do not stop until they reach their targeted destination (finishline).

Arrangement and Photo by Aiko at Mt. Wati Road in Arua like a Museum of Lugbara Art...

The Lugbara people produce a lot of ongo [music], films photos, drawings, paintings, poems and handicrafts (eg kobi, o'buka, kota, sei, olangi, kome or kitipara, ari, mesa, imvu, adungu, mukeka, yofe, olufe, etc) that can be used for various purposes including mingling enyasa, covering food, shielding toddlers from sunheat, collecting harvests, decoration and so on. The culture is truly sweet! The language can also be quite dramatic: (the English word) roof is translated "jo dri" [house head], floor is "jo ale" [house stomach], stomach can also be "a" or "anyajo" [millet house], food especially the bread made from cassava or sorghum flour is enyasa [food slapping] because of what the mingling stick does during preparation or how people pick chunks to eat by slapping and pinching the foodmass, car can be "afa idri koko" [non-living thing], peace is "asindriza" [beautiful heart] while finger is "drimva" [child of the hand, not head]. The Lugbara wordsound "ago" means husband or pumpkin whereas "ezo" is either girlfriend or warthog (wild bushpig); watch your tone seriously unless you don't mind poetic comedy! If a boy does not tell a girl he truly admires her, she can label him a coward; however when he does, she may scold him for nagging her. As a tonal language, Lugbarati serves up different meanings for similar words eg a dude may tell a chick: A le mi tu [I love you very much!] and she texts back the same exact thing but when she actually means: I want to kick you! The best way to write or type that beautiful emotion without any confusing tonal encryption would be: A le mi ambamba [I love you too much]! In many Lugbara villages, if you drop out of school, fall sick often, lose offspring, fail in business, get accidents mysteriously, do not work for an NGO or Government, lack a marriage spouse and child or house, then you are considered cursed and in need of cleansing through paying dues (a few Ugandan Shillings) or slaughtering an animal for past mistakes by yourself or those you descended from. Like seriously, who are we sacrificing the cattle (sheep, goat, cow, chicken, etc) to? Ancestors, ADRO, Azazel or people harbouring ole [witchcraft in the heart]? Why bind someone just because of food? JESUS shed blood for our transgressions, iniquities, diseases, etc (Isaiah 53:5). By HIS stripes, we are made whole. Happiness is personal, not a public opinion. We all exist in different timezones; there are people who get married at 10 years of age, some graduate from university at 11, start business at 25, become immune to common sicknesses at 30 while others get very good international jobs at 44. Chicken eggs hatch after only 21 nights while elephants give birth after 2 years; calm down! The biggest mango trees all started as small seeds. Even after the tribal cleansings, problems never cease: What matters is finding other ideas and practical solutions. As long as GOD allows the Devil to roam on Earth, problems will continue; you solve one, another draws your attention. GOD put enmity between us and the snake (Genesis 3). Women give birth in pain and are ruled by their husbands while men sweat for food all the days of their life, until they return to Lado, because cursed is the ground with thorns and thistles. Our FATHER, deliver us from Evil (Sickness and poverty)!

Arua Citystate (7th March 2016 Emblem modified by Aiko and displayed on the west face of Arua Central Market 2021)

It feels therapeutic #DrawingWhileLugbara! Once upon a time in Arua, I did some manila artwork for my Best Friend (Lili) and her buddies could not believe everything was drawn in Arua, of all places. Can't good Art come from West Nile, doesn't Lugbara genius exist? Talent is not geographical. Isn't there an Art scene around Arua (from Madi Okollo to Vurra, Maracha, Terego, Yumbe, Koboko, Adjumani and beyond)? Haven't you seen any monuments or sculptures (like at Slumberland, Muni National Teachers College, Onduparaka Suburb, Ezuku, etc), murals (eg at Christ The King Church on Arua Avenue, Lodonga Basilica in Yumbe, etc), signpaintings like "Slow... Tooth can lost/ (te) be care full/ 2009" in all caps or gallery locations? Blacks are never ignorant getting goals achieved. Some visual artists/ designers/ exhibitors from near or in Arua and the Lugbara Kari include: King Eugenius, Stacey Gillian Abe, Pius Hoo (muralist), Osoarts Concept Photography on Oluko Road, my namesake cousin Malunga (at Plansuite Consolidate near Manibe Roundabout), Daphne Anicia who loves Art, Androo (aka Andrew Cara, my OB at Kalinabiri Primary School), Richard Amaku (Richo Painters) who chairs the West Nile Painters Association, Adriko Arts, Photo Centre Trust, Lado Art Factory, Azisha's Art and Crafts Spot (AACS), R(onald)'Kumbuka Art, Walter at Paps Supermarket in Sambya, Rap Image Point Arua, Westnile TV, Immaculate (Immy) Mali aka Anderu who presents pain as a touchable emotion, Bright Warom (West Nile Art Expo), Desmond Feni, Arua Artzone Ltd including Sunday Ayikobua (Graphic Designer), etc. From Busia/ Malaba to the Rwenzori, Arua to Lake Victoria, Uganda - which I fancy calling United Gombololas (UG, the Funniest Country on Earth) is the Pearl of Africa; Lado in the northwest from KLA City is where my ancestors are resting: Kini ama drileonzi [Mbu twasirana]! Good or bad, we take whatever is meant for us. Art is not a competition, but contribution and collaboration. One by one makes a bundle!

Welcome to my online, electronic, virtual or cyber Museum of Lugbara Art (MoLA), what I also call Pari Lugbara Wura ni, which is always open for 24 hours a day/ 7 days a week/ 52 weeks a year; Lugbara Ink is my lifestyle. Happy World Art Day (15th April)! Entrance payment or Entry fee to this Art Club exhibition is: FREE THOUSAND (Free,000) UGX only. However, any donation or supportive grant is absolutely welcome - no limits, whether Mobile Money (to +256-781-345712, Edward Aikobua), supplementary tools or suggestions: awa'difo! Emi we emi yofe si; MUNGU le Lugbara ambo!

For GOD and my Country UG...

BIO: ELIZABETH NDEZO DRAMANI [National ID: Liza Dramani expires in November 2024] (Arrived 1947, Departed 2022) was a Ugandan teacher, banker, farmer, crafts artisan and businesswoman; I addressed her as "Ma(mi)". She was the daughter of Reverend Onesimus Banito and Oripa Airu who had 12 children in Aliba Ojepi. Liza meanwhile had 7 descendants plus about six grandchildren at the time of her departure and was a very active, "humble, trustworthy" member (Treasurer) of Mothers Union in Arua. She forced me to improve my "poor handwriting" in Jinja during the early 90s, praised my football and drawing skills plus mentored me to use bigger brushes (especially 4 inch) for painting walls to reduce time spent; she used to do painting while younger plus played sports like netball. Her encouragement combined with the carpentry instructions taught by my father benefitted my Art practice. She also sold cassava flour from near Emmanuel Cathedrel. I learnt about sewing stretchrings from her; Liza would task me to draw flowers on pieces of paper for carbontracing onto furniture cloth-mats she made or paint wedding decoration items. She made handicrafts like doormats, zukulu holders, etc from sisal or threads plus was a wool crotcheter. She also sold drug envelopes to clinics. Although the "Rumble in the Jungle" happened in 1974, six years before she became a refugee in Zaire, my mother would sing to me some of the music Zaireans composed for Muhammad Ali. Her memory remained sharp even in her 70s. She also knew a lot of Lugbara Anglican Church hymns. Around 1965, mother studied at Giova and Nyangilia P7 School before joining Arua Technical Teachers College (1966-9) where she qualified as a Grade 2 teacher. Liza worked at Nyantonzi Primary School Masindi (1970-1), Katobi Airforce Primary School (1972-4), Naguru Katale Primary School (1975-7) and Spire Road Primary School in Jinja (1979-1980). Due to the 1979 Liberation War that ousted the Lugbara-Kakwa President Idi Amin, she had to flee to Ojapi and taught at Ojapi Primary School (whose badge my father designed: We Climb For Success!). Then she went to exile in Congo with her children before joining her husband in Jinja around 1981. From the following year up to 1995 when she left Jinja permanently for Kampala, she was a Note Examiner at Bank of Uganda. It's my mum who taught me how to fill in bankslips. My lovely mother was retired from public service for medical reasons (Thinking about her sickness once brought tears to my eyes: Why couldn't she heal in Jinja?), carried out business in KLA (helped her during school holidays) before moving to continue with my father in Arua from 2001 up to her departure from Earth due to ulcers and colon cancer treatment. Liza's earthly temple of GOD is resting in Ojapi Village (Maracha). She usually told me I was famous for football in our Spire Road hood but didn't understand what happened to me; I basically acquired new dreams. One incident I will never forget my mother for was when I got a terrible fever in P5; a bodarider was called to cycle me home for 200 UgX before lessons ended. I sat outside waiting for her to return from work with the keys; I was shivering like an earthquake (literally gritting my teeth) but she went ahead to cool my skin with a damp cloth which she kept soaking in a basin of cool water. The weather was humid-cold but she insisted until we saw a doctor in the night. Six years later (during S4), I read something in a Biology book about how high temperature is not good for "enzymes" and my respect for my mother doubled. I even apologised to her for all the wrong I may have done or said as I travelled back and forth between West Nile and Bantuland. Before leaving Kampala in December 2013, she visited me and I couldn't hold back tears begging her never to say that I "do not want to listen" to her; felt death approaching like a curse but implored it one day to go away in the mid-2010s as if it was sitted on a sofa. Ma used to tell me I was the Cheekiest (Most Disrespectful) of all her kids; I moved to Arua to spend my final decade close to her. As a crafts maker herself, I guess I got some Art genes from her. She taught me how to mingle enyasa [Lugbara cassava bread] during P7 vacation and I dedicated the Wikipedia article for "Lugbara cuisine" to her after answering many of my questions about various dishes. The best thing I credit my mother for nonetheless is talking to me about the biblical GOD; she never took me to any witchdoctor, shaman nor spiritist. GOD is great...