Paul Cezanne astonished Paris with his broad-brush paintings of apples and has held the artistic world in thrall ever since. He became recognised as the father of modern art.

More than 120 years later, Jjuuko Hoods of Kampala has painted buckets full of onions, heaps of tomatoes, carrots aplenty piled high and heaven knows how many runner beans in the one picture, then repeated the feat no fewer than nine times — and proved a very different point.

While seeking to set down a record of city street life, he demonstrates that technical skill remains the bedrock of art.

It was incidental to his aim. He did not, I am sure, set out to show that he could do what many cannot — make a carrot so believable you could feel it crunch in your mouth. It is simply that he has the ability to do that as part of his wider purpose — to examine and interpret urban chaos.

Last year it was matatus; this year vegetable sellers who spill out onto the streets.

Hoods details all with meticulous care, catching the form, weight and light of the produce with as much care as he recorded the honking, hooting madness of the traffic.

His current exhibition of nine paintings, some sculptures and furniture at the Afriart Gallery in Kamwokya, Kampala on until May 14, highlights the firm conviction of the Kenyan collector Sandeep Desai that Ugandan art has an innate sophistication lacking elsewhere in East Africa.

He attributes this in part to the continuing cultural richness of the Buganda and other kingdoms that continue to flourish there and the hierarchy of excellence they demand. In other words, if they seek respect, Ugandan artists had better step up to the plate.

I am not certain of that. I am not certain of that although it does seem plausible. I do tend to agree that the work of Ugandan artists springs from a basis of technical skill that does indeed lead to a level of sophistication that we should recognise and admire. It may be that Desai is correct and that this is due in some part to the rigour and discipline that has seen ancient kingdoms survive.

I attribute it also to education — integral to any such successful structures.

First there is the formal education of such establishments as the Margaret Trowel School of Art at Makerere and the art classes at Kampala University, and second the established practice of masters accepting pupils of quality determined to acquire the ability to develop their own subjects and styles. It is how the Old Masters did it.

In Uganda this can be seen in the work of the sculptor Lilian Nabulime and the painters Hoods, Geoffrey Mukasa, Daudi Karungi, Joshua Ipoot, Ismael Kateregga and others.

Compare this with Kenya, where the acquisition of formal skills was actively discouraged by such as the late Ruth Schaffner, director of the now defunct Watatu Gallery, who felt the natural self-expression of her artists should come first.

A level of formal inability coupled with a touching back story was after all what her well-heeled Western clients expected and sought. Bright colours, village scenes, animals and paintings of dreams… money was made. Why should anyone worry?

One reason we should worry is that this was patronising nonsense and it should have been stamped on long ago.

In Uganda, art is taught formally in all schools and is examined.

But in Kenya, it was thought that art could look after itself and was therefore whisked off the school curriculum as a subject to test. Surely this was absurd. Our artists codify the past, sense the present and point us towards the future.

Artists are a vital part of any successful society.

So why does Kenya entrust the role of teaching art to a few well meaning people — drawing lessons at the Kuona Trust, voluntary sessions at the National Museum of Kenya and an annual contest run by the museum to encourage children to paint and draw — instead of taking the matter in hand and devoting direct state resources to the development of the arts and artists?

The Kenyan Cabinet Secretaries responsible for art and education should consider this, in between wondering why the Italians and Chinese have hijacked for the third time running the Kenyan pavilion at the Venice Biennale.

Could it be because the CSs and their predecessors in government have left a vacuum to fill?

As one step towards avoiding a repeat, they may think it is worth beginning to create a future reservoir of capable artists by putting the visual arts back on the curriculum and making it once again examinable in Kenyan schools.

Let me add my usual disclaimer. Yes, there are some people whose vision exceeds their technical ability and who therefore forge distinctive styles to express their unique insights. Step forward as examples Kivuthi Mbuno and Ancent Soi. But apart from a handful of gifted outsider artists, the basic skills are essential. They are the building blocks to success.

Would you let an unqualified plumber repair your leaking pipes? Or an untutored mechanic fix your car’s failing brakes?

So why do you expect untaught artists to produce work of quality that will uplift your spirits and maybe even point you towards some solutions to society’s ills.

You want art? Let us start with the basics and start today.