Fantastical beasts at Kitengela hot glass

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At Kitengela glass the first sign that you you’ve stepped into Oz is the sight of a car plunged headfirst into the ground. The roof ripped apart as though Thor’s very hammer had torn it asunder. From there the Anselm Kitengela Glass experience gets ever more bizarre. I’d heard about Kitengela glass since arriving in Nairobi and seen many of the beautiful objects dotted around gardens and homes. At no point had anyone told me that visiting the shop/workhouse would be such a heady journey in the surreal. A bonafide tourist attraction 6km out of Nairobi into the bush

A family business

Kitengela was founded in the 70’s. Built upon land from the Maasai and situated deep in the bush. This desolate area has far reaching views over the city but the feeling of being on the end of the world. The artistic soul of the Croze family soon began to merge art and nature. The family created magic out of the dusty plains and an outdoor art experience where nothing had stood before. Anslem Croze, the son of an artist mother and an ethnologist father, founded his niche early on. Creating the hugely in demand glass artefacts. A marriage of conservation and art, which seems serendipitous with his familyâ€™s background.

Art and architecture in the bush

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I digress. Past the up-turned car you encounter a network of figurines, building and walls taken from Tolkien itself. An eye patched Easter Island head, sits alongside a dragon and otherworldly animals for which I have no name. Walls might seem a slightly curious addition to the list but the walls themselves deserve a mention at Kitengela. As you drive the dirt track to the kiln one long stretch of wall is crowded with life size clay people. One with his head buried in the ground, legs akimbo, others snarling, smiling and sitting. Jewel coloured glass, beads, tiles and metal in all shapes and sizes adorns any and everything in sight. Mosaics litter the floor. Trees are bedecked with glass flowers, raindrops, butterflies and hearts. Strange sculpted animals tower 3 times human height as if guarding the surrounds from the neighbouring lions. The Kitengela buildings are more akin to fantasy than anything I have seen in this world. The main building, a giant brick dome is in fact a mammoth kiln. The bead workshop features antennae, another building is crowned with eagleâ€™s heads. Crammed into every nook and cranny of these buildings both inside and out is art. The art takes the form of the glass that is blown in the hot glass studio. Metal that is worked into windows, doors, tables and bespoke designs. Beads that are produced at 1000 a day, no two ever the same. And the walls. All the walls are alive with colour: glass and bone and wood and metal. It is a madness, and a fantastical and wonderful escape from the world.

Shop Kitengela Glass

Most people come here to buy the world renown glass at local prices, but you could easily spend half a day here just visiting. In true African style you are invite to walk right into workshops. I spent a happy half hour watching glass being blown into vases in the hot glass studio. Then chatting to the craftsman as candy coloured beads were brought to life in the bead house.

Eat

There is cafÃ© on site where you can take your coffee and sit under the trees jangling with glassornaments. Or buy lunch and wander off to find a secret spot and admire the view over the bush.

Buy

There are two formal shops. The main showcasing the best that Kitengela has on offer, glasses, plates,

vases, bowls sit merrily next to hand blown animals, cars and wine stoppers. In the glass blowing studio there is a second shop where you will find glass with slight imperfections available for half the price. The price we are told is highly negotiable, the amiable assistant begs us to barter. For me the beauty of Kitengela glass is in the unique shape of every piece. The imperfections and non-uniformity of the items are what makes it so special. So this bargain basement is a veritable treasure trove and contributed heavily to the overflowing boxes of glass that we brought home.

Kitengela ships all over the world. We were invited into the metal workshop and whilst there we spotted boxes labelled to Dubai, London and Hemmingway’s. It’s hard to impress in written word what a pleasure and rarity it was to be able to see this incredible art being made first hand. It felt like an honor to be able to handpick these incredibly beautiful objects to be part of our home.

This isn’t a shop; this is a live exhibit, where you get to take home the art for a fraction of the price. And it’s worth every minute of the dry, dusty and bumpy drive to the other side of the park.

Things to know about Kitengela Glass

The studio divided a couple of decades ago and there are now confusingly two Kitengela glass studios located in nearly the same place. Anslem Kitengela Hot Glass was the place described here and has more focus on the hot glasshttp://www.kitengela.com

Nani runs the second Kitengela, an artist with a broader scope she is largely responsible for the art and sculptures you will see in the area. Nanis website is hereÂ https://www.kitengelaglassart.com

Much is made online about the road out. Honestly, its no worse than most of the roads outside of Nairobi and some of them within. Its hot, dry, dusty and bumpy – par for the course really. Take a 4×4 if you can and especially if its rainy, but at the end of the dry season we could have easily driven there in a non 4×4 car.