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Outrageous Hippopotamus
Outrageous Hippopotamus
Outrageous can be oh-so-fun, like this fat little delightful hippopotamus. Carved dark kisii stone, hand-painted in assorted splashy designs. Kisii soapstone, found only in Kenya, is a soft stone, easy to carve into many forms. Its satiny finish is achieved through multiple stages of sanding, followed by waxing. In some cases, as with this piece, artisans also apply paint.

HANDCRAFTED IN KENYA

  • Kisii stone
  • Assorted patterns
  • 2.5Lx1.25Wx1.5H inches
  • Made in Kenya

SKU: 4122050

THE MAKERS

Smolart is a self-help organization in the Western Kenyan community of Kisii, near Lake Victoria. As a unique source of kisii soapstone, this area is home to many artisans who make their living through carving. Smolart seeks to improve the lives of member carvers through marketing and logistical supports. Smolart works with 200 producer members, each of whom is a stakeholder. Each member works with several home-based artisans, for a total of some 1,000 carvers, thus creating job opportunities while also allowing artisans to be closer to their families.The group's mission goes beyond providing a fair wage to artisans; they seek to eradicate poverty among their members, promote fair trade, oppose discrimination, to support community efforts and to manage resources sustainably. Ten Thousand Villages has purchased products from Smolart since 2008.
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Welcome to our global maker-to-market movement where, together with 20,000 artisans, we ignite social change. We create opportunities for individuals, families, and communities in developing countries to thrive through strong relationships, fair wages, safe working conditions, and sustainable practices.

Tenthousandvillages.com