Our Story
Discover how Afrikala Art was born and the journey we've been on to get to this day. As told by our Founder, Marl
Afrikala Art was never just a project. To me, it was like lighting a candle to guide me through a dark path and a way to reach out to others to remind them that they are not alone.
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It came to life from a place most people never see, the kind where everything feels broken, heavy, dark and still. I was at one of the lowest points of my life, battling things I didn't yet have the language to name. Mental health wasn’t something people around me talked about in a way I related to or understood and when they did, it was often whispered, hidden or misunderstood.
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But when it felt like my life was losing its colour, I reached out to art, I tapped into my inner child and started colouring my way out of the confusion of my thoughts. This brought clarity. It reminded me to be kinder to myself, to embrace my imperfections and to believe in myself a little bit more. I became my own cheerleader. And in doing so, I learned to better cheer for others, too.
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In that quiet, vulnerable space, Afrikala Art was born.
It was during the pandemic, when the world was grieving, isolated and aching. I had already lost so much, but I chose to reimagine what healing could look like, instead of sitting in what I couldn’t fix. I didn’t have much, no major funding, no perfect plan, but I had hope and conviction. That creativity could be more than expression. That it could be healing. It could restore dignity. It could be a form of power.
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What began as a small circle of believers sharing space, stories, paint and music has grown into a kindness movement for social justice and wellbeing. We’ve now hosted Mental Health Sports Tournaments that have brought together over 3,000 people. We’ve walked the streets for our Mental Health & Mazingira Day, planting over 500 trees for both the environment and our own healing. We’ve reached girls and women in remote areas like Marsabit and Narok through our Mental Health for SRHR initiative, not just handing out dignity kits, but creating safe spaces for honest, difficult, liberating conversations.
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But it hasn’t always been easy. We’ve been ignored. We’ve hit walls. Applications go unanswered. Calls don’t come through. Still, we continue. Because what we’re doing is too important to stop.
"We’ve learned. We’ve grown. We’ve adapted. We’ve impacted & we’ve been impacted.
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…and we’re not done. The journey has just begun"​
​We continue to dream big, of Creative and Wellness spaces in every neighbourhood, children growing up in safe, expressive communities, of creatives earning dignified income from their gifts and of entire communities thriving because we believe that healing and sustainability can co-exist.
This is why we keep co-creating, innovating and laying the foundation for Afrikala’s Creative and Wellness Hubs spaces where creativity will meet strategy, where mental health resilience will be nurtured and where sustainable economic growth becomes possible for young talents who dare to dream regardless of their backgrounds, economic status, ethnicity, class or other stereotypes that divide us.
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Yet, none of this, not a single brushstroke, conversation or hopeful heartbeat, would be possible without you. Our Team. Our Volunteers. Our community. Our partners. Our believers. And now our Trustees. You have walked and continue to walk this journey with us. You have helped us turn isolation into inclusion, pain into purpose and ideas into impact.
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We’re still writing this story…
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But if you’re here, you’re already part of it.
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Together, we will keep creating.
Together, we will keep healing.
Together, we will keep rising.
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The future is creative. The future is now.
Let’s build it. Let’s live it.