Pencil Artist Collins Okello Narrates Exhilarating Encounter With The Uhuru at State House

Collins Okello is the new celebrity in town after his famed pencil portrait of the president in military gear. His impeccable talent has seen him meet the president and land an interview with Mambo Mseto.

His Facebook page Jaduong’ Art Works already has over 3800 likes and he is a guy on the rise. While it is not everyday that you get to be a guest of the Head of State at the State House, Collins has revealed what it was like.

This was his post:

I remember when we arrived at State House, the fountain spring at the entrance and the building with large white pillars, the serene environment, the red carpet…………then i stood next to the president, he gave me a side hug and i hugged him back, then he said “my boy i love this. This is going straight to my office, nowhere else. Thank you soooo much”, what with cameras flashing from all corners, aides standing far but keenly looking around and some were actually smiling with me! Those serious looking guys were smiling, one actually gave me a ‘silent’ thumbs up! Butterflies were swelling in my stomach, my knees were shaking and my voice was stummery. I remember back in primary school we used to write in compositions ‘i prayed that the earth should open up and swallow me alive’, because this was too good to be true, ever felt sweet pain? Ever knocked your head at the edge of a sharp window and felt it through your spinal cord? Down and spreading across your abdominals? Or ever knocked that protruding bone at the side of your foot against the table? Tears of sweetness roll freely, the pain i felt on my fingers as i filled in very excruciating details, the fatigue when i was done with the drawing was immense. Droplets of sweat gather strategically on a cold day. You just smile. A smile that can tear your face apart. A smile that prevents you from uttering a word. It was surreal. And the icing on the cake, he asked me to come back the next day!