The Growing Art Scene in Kenya

Art Galleries in Kenya: A Complete Guide

The future of art is never one you can place a finger on – the one you can make certain prediction about, and it has certainly proven quite a surprise in Kenya. If the growing art scene in Nairobi is anything to go by, Kenya is making great strides in showcasing art, and artists from around Africa are converging here at Nairobi to grow their pursuits. They’ve been using a variety of technologies and approaches, from the classic canvas paintings to the abstract art and reposeful sculpting using both traditional carving and advanced 3D-printing technology.

It is a revolution that’s received high-praise and interest from the city residents and a range of art dealers. In addition to providing convenience and sometimes alternative touring sites in the cities, art galleries around Kenya are connecting people and occupying an art space that was previously obscure. In Nairobi, the epicenter of the art scene in Kenya, more than a handful of expertly curated art galleries now hold regular symposiums and exhibitions that bring together art collectors and art lovers – and even those with no experience in art – to useful gatherings that are assuredly spreading the love of art in Kenya.

In London, where world-class art is everywhere you look when it comes to a trip to the capital, seeking out new art could be less of an adventure. London’s fine galleries, and there are many, is an indefectible ambition for an art scene, and it has been over a century in the making. The art scene in Kenya is new, innocent, but altogether determined and unique. The shift is driven by a need to create art stirred by local issues for a local market. In doing so, art galleries in Kenya have adopted contemporary art perhaps faster than any other country in East Africa.

Index of Art Galleries in Kenya

Embu County - Embu Art Centre, Kiambu County - Red Hill Art Gallery, Banana Hill Art Gallery, Kisumu County - The Little Art Gallery, Kwale County - Diani Beach Art Gallery, Machakos County - African Heritage House, Nairobi County - GoDown Art Centre, Matbronze Art Gallery & Foundry, Bonzo Art Gallery, Circle Art Agency, Kioko Mwitiki Art Gallery, Photizo Art Gallery, Upepe Photography Gallery, Kuona Trust, Shift Eye Studio, Nairobi Gallery

“Anybody can look at a pretty girl and see a pretty girl. An artist can look at a pretty girl and see the old woman she will become. A better artist can look at an old woman and see the pretty girl that she used to be. But an exceptional artist – a master – and that is what Auguste Rodin was-can look at an old woman, protray her exactly as she is…and force the viewer to see the pretty girl she used to be…and more than that, he can make anyone with the sensitivity of an armadillo, or even you, see that this lovely young girl is still alive, not old and ugly at all, but simply prisoned inside her ruined body. He can make you feel the quiet, endless tragedy that there was never a girl born who ever grew older than eighteen in her heart…no matter what the merciless hours have done to her. Look at her, Ben. Growing old doesn’t matter to you and me; we were never meant to be admired-but it does to them.” – Robert Heinlein