Nyumba ya Sanaa

Nyumba ya Sanaa was founded by American Maryknoll Sister Jean Pruitt in 1972 as a place to support local artists by organizing workshops, exhibitions and sale of their works.

Painter and sculptor George Lilanga, one of the most famous and internationally acclaimed Tanzanian artists, began his career at the centre.

After it was destroyed to make room for a modern business tower, wooden sculptures of shetani figures, that were included in these doors, were bought and restored by a German collector.

[2] Other notable Tanzanian artists who worked at Nyumba ya Sanaa were Augustino Malaba, Patrick Francis Imanjama, or Robino Ntila.

At the end of 2016, Lebanon Valley College in Pennsylvania, US, presented a traveling exhibition from Syracuse University Art Galleries, entitled Nyumba Ya Sanaa: Works from the Maryknoll Collection with artworks by 22 Tanzanian artists - including prints, drawings, watercolors, sculptures, and textiles, that were donated by the Maryknoll Sisters.