The "House of Art" was founded in 1972 by an Italian missionary, Sister Jean Pruitt, as a workshop and gallery for Tanzanian artists who could not afford studio space. Half a century later it still operates from a low compound off Ohio Street in the city centre, with painters, batik-makers, ceramicists, and a sculpture yard all visible from a quiet internal courtyard.
The on-site shop sells originals at fixed prices — refreshingly so after Mwenge — and the Sunday morning workshops are open to walk-in visitors. Even if you do not buy anything, it is the easiest place in Dar to see contemporary Tanzanian art being made.