Commissioned Works

Dena is available to accept commissions. The pieces shown below were commissioned by private companies in Nairobi, Kenya. 

Nairobi Serena Hotel

The Axum Bar

The Nairobi Serena Hotel sought artwork to conceal four storage cupboard doors in the Axum Bar. Dena was commissioned to make four panels, different in design but identical in size. The pieces were made of silk dupioni cut on the bias and trimmed with tapes and beadwork. Each measured 72" tall by 21" wide, and the pieces were mounted on top and bottom brass rods. Dena named the works after the four primary cities of Ethiopia:  Axum, Gondar, Harar, and Lalibela.

Rockefeller Foundation, Nairobi

The Rockefeller Foundation commissioned four pieces of Dena's work for their Nairobi offices. She worked with a professor from the University of Nairobi to develop themes and ideas for the four pieces. Each had to fit available wall space and blend well with the interior's color schemes. The four pieces Dena designed and made are shown below:  "Jua Kali" depicting the notion of savannah; "Guardian" in honor of Mzee Jomo Kenyatta; "Conversation Piece" to hang behind a small table and two chairs in a quiet corner of the office, and "The Future is Now," showing the impact of discarded technical and plastic waste on downtown Nairobi.

Jua Kali (Hot sun), 79" x 32", hand-dyed cotton and synthetic fancy fabrics, hand-painted, hand-beaded, machine-pieced, machine-appliquéd, machine-quilted

Jua Kali (Hot sun) Detail

"Guardian," 79" x 19"; hand-dyed and commercially-printed 100% cotton fabrics, leather, hand-sewn beads, machine-pieced, machine-quilted

"Guardian" Detail

"Conversation Piece," a Structured Fabrics art quilt; 79" x 36"; 100% cotton commercial and hand-dyed fabrics, mirrors, metal chains; machine-pieced, machine-quilted, hand-embellished

"Conversation Piece" Detail

"The Future Is Now" art quilt, 79" x 19"; 100% Silk fabrics, computer parts, recycled glass rings, various paillettes and beads, holographic ribbon; machine-pieced, machine- and hand-embellished

"The Future Is Now" Detail

For more information about commissioned art, contact Dena directly.