A night of silent auction of elephant artwork
By HILARY KIMUYU, @hilarykimuyuSelected art enthusiasts from various backgrounds convened at a silent auction on Saturday evening at an invite-only event held at the Villa Rosa Kempinski Hotel in Nairobi.
The invited guests got to interact with artists who got a front row seat to the creative process that goes into art.
The exhibition was staged as Kenya attracted global attention as it prepared and subsequently burnt the largest stockpile of ivory and illegal wildlife products in an effort to end the runaway poaching that threatens the existence of elephants and rhinos.
The selected artists got the rare opportunity to tell their elephant story in their preferred mediums to guests at the five-star hotel
The project named ‘Wasanii Jukwaani’, which loosely translates as ‘artists on stage’, whose theme was Conservation of Elephants involved Kenyan artists carefully selected.
‘A FAMILY OF ELEPHANT’
The project was a weeklong exhibition where artists took the stage to create their masterworks under the very same people they hoped to sell the pieces to in the most unlikely of places.
With more than Sh3 million raised, Mr Manish Nambiar, Villa Rosa Kempinski General Manager said the silent auction was going to be an annual event with different themes every year.
“We will always support artists because we believe they possess silent but potent power through their brush and paint. Kenya has amazing artists who need a platform to showcase their skill and talent,” Mr Nambiar said.
“We had more than 150 guests in attendance during the auction of over a dozen artworks that were created by 15 artists in our hotel lobby who had five days to finish their work,” he added.
‘A Family of Elephants’, an oil painting by Samuel Githui, a freelance artist, sold for a stunning Sh500,000.
Proceeds from the silent auction will be shared between the artists and Wild Aid who will channel the funds into elephant conservation.