About / CV
Bruce Karim
Ugandan-Swedish multidisciplinary artist based in Stockholm, working across painting, mixed media, creative reuse, dance and performance.
I move between painting, mixed media, reclaimed materials, dance and performance because these forms allow me to express different parts of an experience. A gaze can hold your attention. A material can carry a history. A movement can say something I find difficult to put into words.
Identity, freedom and belonging return throughout my work. I am interested in the strength a person or image can hold, and the vulnerability within that strength. I want the work to have a presence of its own while leaving room for you to bring something of yourself.
A journey shaped by making.
In 2017, at nineteen, I created three paintings for Väsbyhem during a summer job in Upplands Väsby. The work was recognised in a youth magazine and through several interviews. That encouragement helped me continue my journey as an artist.
In 2019, I held a solo exhibition and open studios in my own studio in Sundbyberg. Studies at Basis Konstskola in 2023–2024 helped me continue exploring the connections between painting, material and physical expression.
Sharing the practice
Encouragement can change a direction.
I know what it can mean when someone takes your creativity seriously. Alongside my own artistic work, I teach dance at Solna Kulturskola and lead workshops for children and young people.
I founded Rise & Change in 2025. Through our programme Trygga rum för barn och unga, we create opportunities to explore art, dance, movement, storytelling and creative reuse. Making room for other people’s ideas is part of how I understand my role as an artist.
For curators, organisers & press
Short professional bio
Bruce Karim (Abdul Karim Katungi) is a Ugandan-Swedish multidisciplinary artist based in Stockholm, working across painting, mixed media, creative reuse, dance and performance. He explores identity, freedom and belonging. His work includes Sound of Freedom, a five-by-five-metre movement-based painting, and RISE UP, presented at Konsthall C in 2025 and Amnesty Artivism in 2026. He studied Bild & Form at Basis Konstskola in 2023–2024 and is the founder of Rise & Change, a nonprofit association creating opportunities for children and young people through art and movement.
Selected career highlights
Exhibitions & performance
2026
RISE UP, Amnesty Artivism, CMNTY, Stockholm; The Qave, Sundbyberg; Diva Gallery, Gamla stan; Chiselstudio; Sollentuna konstrunda.
2025
RISE UP, first public presentation, Konsthall C; Sound of Freedom, MadeBy Gallery; solo exhibition, Chiselstudio; Easy Gallery, Bergen.
Earlier presentations
Artist Arena, Stockholm (2024); Juste Gallery and Skärholmens Folkets Hus (2023); solo exhibition at my own studio, Sundbyberg (2019).
Commissions & education
Public art
Municipal youth-centre commission, Upplands Väsby (2020); three paintings for Väsbyhem (2017).
Education
Basis Konstskola, Bild & Form / mixed media (2023–2024).
Stadsmissionens Folkhögskola, creative studies (2018–2019).
Teaching & exchange
Dance teacher at Solna Kulturskola. Workshops and creative exchange in Sweden and internationally, including Uganda.
The downloadable CV includes the fuller exhibition history, teaching, artistic leadership and linked work samples.
Artist statement
I make work from what I have lived, what I notice and what I am still trying to understand. I want it to hold a presence of its own, while leaving room for you to bring something of yourself.
Let’s begin a conversation.
For exhibitions, commissions, performances, residencies, workshops and artistic collaborations, contact me directly.
Art · @brucekarim.art / Dance · @brucekarim_
Bruce Karim · Abdul Karim Katungi
Stockholm, Sweden
