Always love catching up with my pals at the M2 Studio in the Kibera slum while traveling through Nairobi, Kenya, and today was another great visit. (Such encounters are one of the upsides of having to put the Chicago gallery to sleep over the winter, as I focus on travels and photography pursuits.)

The M2 guys were excited about the prospect of procuring the deed to their studio. It’s a ramshackle, 2-story shack, basically, but it’s a wild explosion of colors and materials and spirit, and in my eyes, an amazing  anchor of life and hope in this little corner of the 1-million population Kibera.

They also showed more of their political portraits, including some fun new Obama stuff; talked about bursting at the seams with participating artists; and shared their excitement over an upcoming show in Nairobi. You can view a photo set of the artists and their current art here. You can see a previous set of photos here, from spring 2008.

within(Reason) is proud to have supported the M2 guys via donation to help them purchase the deed and make the home a permanent one. For information about seeing more of their art, procuring anything you might see here or in my albums, or sponsoring the studio, email me at any time, at ron@artwithinreason.com