Natural Soapstone Family Sculpture - 2 Parents & 3 Children

$28.00

Hand-carved from a single piece of Kisii soapstone by African artisans, the outstretched arms of parents and children hold onto one another in love and connectivity. These beautiful soapstone sculptures personify the timeless strength of the family bond.

Product Features:

Measures approximately 10-inches tall. Due to the handmade nature, actual size may vary by up to an inch.
A natural stone, color variations will range from cream to pink to gold to gray in any single piece.
Soapstone is a soft stone, making it easy to carve into many forms. Handle with care to avoid breakage.
Each piece has gone through multiple stages of sanding and waxing, giving the soapstone a satiny finish.
Socially responsible products that empower consumers to purchase according to their values and help alleviate global poverty.
Fair Trade is an alternative business model that values safe workplaces, fair wages and community investment for factory employees.

Meet the Artisans

Metal Artisan in Haiti Our Soapstone is carved by the artists of SMOLArt a group of artists who live in the rural village of Tabaka, Kenya, the heart of soapstone crafts. The name, a shortened version of Small, Medium, and Large Artists, refers to the size of the soapstone products the artisans make, not their stature. Established in 1990, SMOLArt is a member of the WFTO, and as such assures that the artisans are paid a fair price for their work. In addition, the organization support community development by contributing to projects that improve living conditions, education, and health of their members and the village at large.

Soapstone is mined from great pits in the area surrounding Kiisi, Kenya. The mined soapstone is then delivered to carvers who carve sculptures from the natural stone for the wholesale market, the color of which ranges from cream, to pink, to brown, to yellow, to black, to a marbling of all of them. Once carved, the craftspeople smooth rough edges of the soapstone with sandpaper dipped in water and polish the piece to a high gloss or paint African motifs in brilliant colors with etched accents.

All of the soapstone products we sell are completely handmade. The tools consist of household items from screwdrivers, hand drills, to switchblades. "Pangas," sword-like tools usually used for cutting down vegetation, are used to cleave the stone in the mines.