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How Artist Martin Senkubuge is Using his Artwork to Dismantle the Stigma Around Vitiligo

An artist on a mission!

In September 2019, Ugandan artist Martin Senkubuge was showcasing artwork at a group exhibition in Kampala when a woman approached him. She was drawn to a painting of his titled Melanin Tattoo. Ready to pay, she asked him if there was a particular story behind the painting. Senkubuge said the painting, which confronted issues around skin whitening, was inspired by Michael Jackson and how he bleached his skin.

Photo courtesy of Martin Senkubuge

“Artists should do research before presenting their work,” she said, disappointed, and less motivated to purchase the piece. The woman was a Michael Jackson fan and she knew that the late pop star had suffered from vitiligo, a skin disorder that causes loss of skin color in blotches and patches. From that moment, Senkubuge was inspired to learn about the pop star’s relationship with vitiligo.

He would find out that the star had received criticism from the public, on the assumption that he had chose to bleach his skin. If a man of such international acclaim was treated this way, how were those who were poorer treated? In other parts of the world — in remote places where public ignorance thrives — those living with the condition are seen as a bad omen or cursed.

Senkubuge wanted to change that. He soon founded the Part of Us initiative. The main objectives of the initiative are to visually amplify vitiligo voices, fight against stereotypes and stigma, and embrace vitiligo as a natural skin condition using visual art.

Photo courtesy of Martin Senkubuge

In his small studio in the outskirts of Kampala, the 25-year-old artist draws hyper-realistic charcoal portraits of persons with vitiligo. Between April and May, 2022, Sunkubugbe conducted an online survey where respondents revealed that they faced stigma, trauma, emotional stress and social injustice as a result of vitiligo. In his campaign along the way, he has been the recipient of a slew of recognition and external support. In 2020, he won a project grant of 2 million Ushs ($559) from Goethe Zentrum, Kampala (GZK).

Together, with a team of volunteers, he organized a solo show in the premises of GZK throughout April, 2021. Under Part of Us, the exhibition advocated for inclusivity of people living with vitiligo. Recent data from Global Vitiligo Foundation indicates that about 70-100 million people are affected by vitiligo in the world. In Africa, people living with vitiligo are stigmatized for the entirety of their lives.

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Photo courtesy of Martin Senkubuge

In this interview with OkayAfrica, Senkubuge talks about combating stereotypes around vitiligo and challenges faced by his initiative.

Here are a few excerpts from the interview:

What was your turning point in your art career?

October 2021 was a game changer. It was during this time that my lost hope was restored. At first, it was when my artworks were featured in a Guardian article by John Agaba. Then a journalist from BBC World Service contacted me after reading the same article. This was a dream come true and, for the first time, my dad believed that his son would make it as an artist. Additionally, this international recognition and attention towards my drawings became a strong affirmation that my artwork is relevant. I cannot afford to reconsider being a visual artist; I firmly believe that I will die one.

With the stigma surrounding vitiligo not only in Uganda but on the continent, how do you find and approach models for your portraits?

At the beginning, in 2019 and 2020, I would post on my social media platforms asking for contacts of people with vitiligo. After talking to about 60 over the phone — since it was during the lockdown period — only three gave me the benefit of trust. It was challenging then to convince many, since opportunists have taken advantage of their condition and left them more emotionally damaged. Currently, the fact that more writers and journalists have continued to document and cover my work and stories of the models [helps.] Most of the new models already have hints about my clear vision and they are more than willing to contribute to this vision.

Do you believe that art can reduce stigma and myths surrounding vitiligo in Uganda and Africa at large?

I believe that art can reduce stigma and myths. Looking back in the old times of Caravaggio, [Claude] Monet, Rembrandt and Leonardo Da Vinci times, artists were mirrors to their societies. They would capture moments and events which greatly and diversely informed our present times in terms of medical, health, technology, education, life trends, fashion, and politics. I believe that, as artists, we have a high sense of imagination which we can use to either build or destroy the world through our executions in fine arts, films, animations, musical lyrics and videos, designs, content on the internet. One of my philosophies as a researcher and a visual artist is that the more we paint, draw, and showcase a challenge based on research, to the public with consistency, vision and reason, we can positively influence transformations in various societal perceptions.

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The article was originally published by OkayAfrica

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