Migadde Adrian

Adrian Migadde (b. 1989 in Kampala, Uganda) is a multidisciplinary artist working across pen drawing, photography, magazine collage and acrylic painting. His practice is rooted in a sustained engagement with the emotional, social and political realities of his community, with a particular focus on mental health, cultural preservation and the overlooked complexities of everyday Ugandan life.

Migadde holds a first-class bachelor's degree in Industrial Fine Art from Uganda Christian University, Mukono (2013), where he majored in sculpture, graphics, drawing and painting. Following his graduation, he worked as a gallerist at Afriart Gallery, Kampala, from 2013 to 2018—an experience that deepened his understanding of the contemporary African art landscape before he committed fully to his studio practice.

His return to artmaking was shaped by personal discovery. Whilst retracing his ancestral roots, he uncovered generations of suppressed artistic practice alongside undiagnosed mental illness—schizophrenia and bipolar disorder misread through the lens of African mysticism. He spent five years living with and caring for his uncle, an experience that fundamentally redirected his practice. ‘I began exploring mental health and mental strength while trying to find my own artistic voice’, he reflects.

This inquiry forms the conceptual backbone of his work. His politically charged figurative works, including Protection Is Mine, Foolhardys, Last Tow and Beyond My Consciousness, depict African soldiers in European uniforms set against the ruins of colonially destroyed cultural sites, using portraiture as a mode of historical documentation and resistance.

Migadde has exhibited at the Surface Group Exhibition (2017), the Colour Group Exhibition in Turin, Italy, and the Kampala Biennale (2018). His work is held in collections across Italy, the USA, Kenya, France and Qatar.

Contributors: Favour Ritaro (The Distance Between Yesterday and Tomorrow) and Fadzai Muchemwa (Traces and Transitions)

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