Custom made fine furniture, blending Kenyan and Vermont
traditional carving styles

A furniture maker by training, Daniel Omondi Odhuno began learning his craft at age 13 in his father's workshop in Mombasa, Kenya -- a workshop that has won national awards for its products. Following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, Daniel inherited the business and proceeded to establish himself as an accomplished woodworker receiving national recognition by the UNCDF Micro-Enterprises Support Programme in 2001. It is his carving, however, that sets Daniel's work apart. Practicing a local Swahili style of carving heavily influenced by the rich cultural and religious traditions of Oman and India, his work features the complex geometric designs and floral motifs that have adorned furniture, doors, and homes along the East African Coast since the sixteenth century.

Daniel has set up shop in the Southern Vermont artisan center of Brattleboro, operating out of a workshop on Cotton Mill Hill and showing his work in galleries throughout the state, in Manchester, Woodstock and Brattleboro. From his workshop, he builds an array of desks, coffee tables, chairs, beds and other furniture pieces, each piece complemented by Daniel's unique intricate carving designs. Individual pieces can be viewed in person, via appointment, or through Daniel's website: www.omondiwood.com His work typifies a blending of artwork from his home in East Africa and the rich woodlands of New England.

After having moved to the United States in 2001, Daniel's successful transition between the two vastly different cultures of Kenya and rural Vermont is evident in his work where native Kenyan woods, bambakofe and mvole, complement cherry, maple and walnut to create genuinely unique pieces. Daniel's trademark style includes complex geometric patterns set into maple, cherry and mahogany wood.

Daniel has incorporated the New England shaker style into his designs and pieces and works collaboratively with clients to create individually crafted furniture pieces. Using dove-tail and mortise and tenon joints, Daniel creates durable furniture. Embedded in Daniel's style and work is a core belief in the rich beauty of the traditional East African carving techniques, methods of carving that have been passed down over centuries from old-style Oman and Indian traditions of furniture making. Daniel believes that furniture making should blend both traditional styles with utilitarian functions, yielding practical, and ornate heirloom fine furniture.

An award winning furniture maker in both Kenya and the United States, in October 2006 Daniel Omondi Odhuno was selected as winner of the award for Best in Show for a traditional furniture piece at the 11th Annual Providence Fine Furnishings Show in Rhode Island. Given Daniel's recent arrival to the United States woodworking scene, this award marks a tremendous accomplishment in a show that drew approximately 200 of the nation's most skilled and renowned furniture makers whose individual pieces ranged in price up to $55,000.

Visitors are encouraged to visit Daniel's studio, located in Brattleboro, Vermont at 76 Cotton Mill Hill. Daniel Omondi Odhuno can be reached at the following:

E-mail: omondi1@verizon.net
Tel.: (Home) 802 254 5248
(Cell) 802 380 2633