Nairobi, July 2 -- When Valary Mumbo started tagging along with her artist friend, Rosie Olang', to art events and exhibitions, little did she know it would lead her down the rabbit hole of art collecting and eventually inspire her to co-found a club for young collectors.

I met her at Paper Cafe in Nairobi, where she and her co-chair, Michael Kainga, spoke about their journeys as art collectors.Valary's interest in collecting art began around 2018 when she started attending exhibitions with her friend Rosie.

When she first visited Kuona Arts Trust, she bought a sculpture simply because it looked cool. Today, her collection has grown to about 40 pieces, each added over time as her eye for art and confidence as a collector evolved.

"I li...