Built in 1913, the old PC’s office building affectionately known as “Hatches, Matches and Dispatches” is located in the heart of Nairobi City at the junction of Kenyatta Avenue or Uhuru Highway. Births, marriages, and deaths recorded here define the gallery’s significance. Currently the structure is a safari National Monument and functions as a museum with a permanent collection based on the Murumbi African Heritage collection Rendile and folk art from the includes ancient, sculptures, paintings and artifacts of daily life from many African cultures, temporary art exhibitions. The Nairobi gallery in Swahili, Nyumba ya saan aya Nairobi, is committed to presenting African art safaris.
The building housed the temporary Commissioner’s office from 1963 to 1984.Later, until 1997, Kanu’s branch office in Nairobi used the premises.Declared a national monument in 1995, the structure was then turned over to the National Museums of Kenya in 1997. The state corporation started the process of renovating the structure in 1999; the work was finished in 2005 and the gallery opened for its first time. In 2019, the National Museums of Kenya worked with Google to digitize the exhibits from the Nairobi gallery for the Google Arts and Culture platform and install a modified Google Street View projection in the museum’s halls.
Nairobi artists’ gallery
Nairobi exhibition gallery
Along with a collection of Joseph Murumbi’s images, the Nairobi gallery acquired other pan-African stamps from around the continent. Lamu sofa, a Zanzibar cabinet, and posters on African legacy abound in the “Joseph and Sheila Murumbi’s Room”. Along with traditional weaponry, African stools, and containers used by the several Kenyan communities to keep items or cook, the gallery features.
Apart from the traditional clothings like Egunguns, Nairobi gallery also features Nubian baskets and wood carvings. Bruce Onokbrakpeya, Joseph Olabode, Asiru Olatunde Osogbo, artists from all around Africa including Nigeria have sculptures and paintings in the gallery.
Looking at the exquisite art collection of African culture that inspires and impresses you every piece of art in this gallery is the main activity on a safari to the Nairobi Gallery. At this exhibition you also discover how creatively African people were; their traditional clothes, the wood carvings, furniture and untencils all leave you amazed how they managed to produce such exquisite piece of work.
Nairobi exhibition gallery
Nairobi Gallery
Furthermore housed at the gallery is Murumbi, the private art collector. One can visit this gallery especially to specifically purchase the African artifacts that are sold reasonably at the fair prices. This house had different art collections since the owner was an art collector and shows how Murumba loved Africa and thus the need of preserving the culture for the future generations.
While the locals and non-residents pay Ksh 600 and 1000 respectively, Kenyan citizens just need Ksh 150 for admission. Additionally available are night safaris and guides. Daily opening of the Nairobi gallery is 8:30 am to 5:30 pm.
Located in the heart of the Nairobi city nest to Nyayo House, the Nairobi gallery is easily reachable via Uhuru highway and Kenyatta Avenue since it sits at the junction of the two routes.
Built in 1913, the Nairobi Gallery is well-known in Kenya. Originally a civil service building, it is affectionately referred to as “Hatches, Matches, and Dispatches” due to the recorded births, marriages, and deaths. Today, the building is a safari destination; that is, rather well known as a museum and a national monument. The Nairobi gallery now reflects the growth of the nation.
Nairobi gallery
Nairobi Gallery
Part of the historical Kenya safari of the city of Nairobi, the building is a National Monument displaying several exhibits of artwork by both foreign and indigenous artists. Published by the Voice Map, the visitors to this historical monument make use of a creative GPS audio walking safari software. The building’s impressive architecture is most definitely underappreciated work of Kenyan history and culture; the government would gain nothing by neglecting it and would actually just hide its actual beauty.
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