Vision and mission
A studio that pays its makers and its town.
Two short statements, written by the people who work here, and the values we check our decisions against.
Our vision
Waste is a starting material, not an ending.
A Thika where discarded material is treated as a resource, and where any young person with an idea can find a bench, a mentor and a market within walking distance of home.
We want the town to look at a scrap yard the way we do, as a store of colour, texture and pattern that has already been paid for. We want the artists who see it that way to be able to make a living from it, here, without leaving for Nairobi to be taken seriously.
Our mission
What we actually do, week to week.
Thika Art Collective Studio gathers artists, makers and students around salvaged material, and turns that material into work that sells, skills that stay, and exhibitions that travel.
We collect and sort waste from local markets, farms and workshops. We hold open studio sessions that anyone can walk into. We pair every new member with a working artist for a season of training. We sell the finished work through shows, commissions and visiting buyers, and the majority of every sale goes to the person who made it.
The studio keeps a small share to cover material handling, tools and the rent, and to pay mentors for the hours they teach.
What we hold to
Five things we do not trade away
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The maker gets paid first
Every sale is split before anything else happens, and the artist takes the larger share. Teaching hours are paid too.
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Open door, no gatekeeping
No portfolio, no fee and no qualification is needed to join a Saturday session. The bench is the entry requirement.
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Material before purchase
If a piece can be made from something already collected, it is. New material is a last resort, not a default.
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Skills leave with the person
What someone learns here is theirs. Members who set up their own workshops stay part of the network and are welcome back.
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Thika first
Shows travel, but the work starts and returns here. Local schools and groups get first call on tours and workshops.
The vision needs a market to be real.
Buyers, hosts, donors and volunteers are all part of the same loop. If any of those describes you, the studio would like to hear from you.
