Driving down the pitted, dusty roads of rural Africa, surrounded by tumble-down shacks, the cacophony, colour and vibrancy of life in this part of the East African coast, one would never imagine that such a place could give rise to objects that could adorn contemporary western interiors, nor appeal to European or American styles with such incredible alacrity. A group of local Kenyan artisans, able to cleave from a piece of mango wood, a perfectly formed chaise longue, mould a beautiful bowl from recycled aluminium and assemble a unique bracelet from copper beads and semi-precious stones…sounds improbable but under the whispering palm trees lies Marzia Chierichetti’s most unusual workshop. Each artisan has been trained by Marzia and now produces work of the highest quality using raw materials gathered from the local area. Marzia’s workshop has not only provided this group of talented artists with training and direction, but has also given them an opportunity to earn a living with which to support their families and improve their standard of living.

Much of what comes out of the workshop is produced using recycled materials, however the wood is grown in the local coastal belt and for every mango tree harvested, 10 are re-planted in the local villages. Plastic water bottles and rubber hosepipes are transformed into lamps, old car tyres into shoes and ancient metal furniture into bowls, frames and jewelry. Passionate about conservation, Marzia plans to set up more re-forestation projects, a school to encourage local artists to explore their creativity and more projects to utilise natural materials in the improvement of living standards for the local communities.