The pandemic is affecting many people and in different ways. The world has gone digital, and some people have become more health-conscious, reading more, and taking walks. People’s outlook and behaviour have changed during this time.

Below is a glimpse into Rodney’s creative experience during Covid-19.

My art form is painting, but I can also draw portraits and illustrations. My themes mainly explore social consciousness in society with inspiration drawn from my mind, daily observations of my surroundings (Nature and Environment), and my work with Community.  I enjoy exploring different techniques that are dictated by the message am always putting forward.  My work is always figurative, with a lot of symbolism, patterns, and color aimed at bringing out the subject.  I use materials like pastels, pencils, Acrylic Paint, Oil Paint, charcoal to explore different surfaces both big and small like paper,  canvas, wood, metal, and walls.

Rodney’s Vision

My Vision is to see a world of equal opportunity where every young person especially the not so privileged has immediate access to opportunities available. I know a lot of young people especially the underprivileged out there that have limited or no access to opportunities not because they aren’t good enough but because there’s an enormous gap between them and the opportunities for something I long to address. My goal is to create and nurture platforms where this can manifest itself.

Platforms for example Streetlights Uganda a Nonprofit using art to empower street children in Kampala Uganda where I deploy my art as a vehicle to help build resilience in these young ones through mentorship, training, and support.

I also work with Reminac Comics an art and design inspired publishing company focusing on illustration and publication of storybooks and comic books for all ages. Through this, my team and I create opportunities for children to write self-inspired stories which we turn into comic books with them as authors helping them grow their writing, comprehension, and marketing skills.

Challenges Faced

Speaking with different creatives in the same line of work has kept me going, knowing that I am not in this alone and this too shall pass.

Through retrospection during this season, I have been able to derive inspiration from within my own personal experiences. This has enabled me to overcome the urge to always move out and look for inspiration elsewhere. For example, I did a 10 piece series while trying out a Nigerian inspired painting technique called Araism that I learned while in a residency in India last year.

To overcome the challenge of creative blocks, I have learned to always pen down my ideas even before I draw them. There I will always have a reference point when the creative spark is ignited and this will keep me from creating something even when I don’t feel like.

The future for the creative industry

I see my art form growing with me exploring more techniques, taking part in different residences, workshops, and opportunities to build the art form and connect with different creatives. I see the art form growing its audience from the one it has now both online and offline. I hope to onetime create Merchandise for some of my works to give back to my clients. I hope to create more spaces and platforms for other young artists to join in on the journey of creating. Creatives need to go digital by embracing different digital platforms because the creative industry in the postmodern era will be accelerated towards digital and it’s already happening.

The future of the Creative industry with support from the relevant bodies, especially after Covid-19 is on to greatness. Governments need to recognize the creative industry as a relevant/essential industry in society and hence have an integral part in the economic, social, and environmental recovery plan post-Covid-19.

If these illustration inspire you and want to contact the artist click here.