NOMAD

Home of the arts

Things we do

Weekend Workshops

Over the weekends, NOMAD hosts themed workshops, often led by specialists in their field. These sessions are perfect for getting together with friends, relaxing, and learning new art skills like macramé, pottery, papier-mâché and more.

Team Building Experiences

We offer relaxed team-building experiences that boost workplace morale. Teams enjoy fun, hands-on art and craft activities using a variety of materials. No artistic experience is needed — just curiosity, creativity, and a willingness to connect.

Young creatives aged 6 to 16

Tuesday and Thursday afternoons are loud, colourful, and gloriously messy. From 14h00 to 17h00, the NOMAD courtyard fills with young artists who happily paint the sky green and the sun blue because mistakes don’t exist.

Tourist Creative Experience

NOMAD offers a creative, authentic experience for visitors who want to step away from typical tourist activities. Join the Community Art and Craft Project on Friday afternoons, or book a session at a time that suits you. Perfect for tourists, families, couples, and friends. Leave Swakopmund with more than photos by creating a meaningful souvenir to remember your time in Swakopmund.

Guest Mentors / Teachers

Some workshops are led by guest mentors who share skills from their professional careers and creative practices. These sessions give participants the opportunity to learn directly from artists and makers with real experience in their fields. Mentors bring fresh perspectives, new techniques and inspiring ideas into our creative space. We warmly welcome you to contact NOMAD to collaborate with us.

Shop and Gallery

NOMAD’s small, humble shop is filled with heart. Here you will find products created by participants of the NOMAD Community Arts and Crafts Project, as well as paintings, photographs, and artwork by Namibian artists. NOMAD asks a small 10% commission to help maintain the space. By buying here, you are not only supporting local artists but also help us continue our community project.

NOMAD Community Project

A big thank you to our corporate sponsors whose support makes it possible for NOMAD to offer FREE arts, crafts and entrepreneurship workshops.

NOMAD Small Business Seminar

NOMAD: Home of the Arts hosted a seminar from 26 August to 29 August 2025, aimed at empowering women entrepreneurs to grow their small businesses.

The programme was spearheaded by Karin Retief, founder NOMAD: Home of the Arts.

The seminar engaged participants in an insightful discussion on small business management and financial skills. Drawing on her experience and passion for empowering local entrepreneurs, she guided attendees through practical strategies to strengthen their businesses and work towards long-term sustainability.

The seminar was made possible through the support of sponsors Emssence and OBECO.

Waste to Wonder

Waste to Wonder is a creative sustainability project at NOMAD: Home of the Arts, generously sponsored by Southern Namibia Hake Fishing Industries through director Gigi Mathias. Every Friday from 14h00 to 17h00, women gather for free crafting lessons where discarded materials such as paper, packaging and plastics are transformed into beautiful, useful creations.

What began as simple craft sessions has grown into a supportive community and a source of income for many participants. Participants turn what would normally end up in landfill into meaningful objects, adding to the global effort to live more consciously and care for the environment.

Thrive Collective

14 February 2026

The success of NOMAD’s collaboration with Emssence evolved into a new initiative called Thrive Collective. Through this programme, creative entrepreneurship workshops will be hosted at NOMAD. The programme was officially launched in February 2026 with the workshop Design That Sells.

Thrive Collective was created by Charene Labuschagne, Brand Manager at Emssence in Windhoek. She also secured additional sponsorship from Timeware (computer systems) and Paratus (internet), whose support help make these workshops possible.

About NOMAD

NOMAD: Home of the Arts is a community centred creative hub based in Swakopmund, Namibia.

It was started by Life in Namibia (LIN) founder Karin Retief, to give artists and makers a welcoming space to create, learn, connect and grow through art and craft.