Shela Hat Contest 2023

Last weekend for the 7th time in 13 years the Shela Hat Contest took place, an extraordinary hat-making competition on the Kenyan island of Lamu organised by Mr. Herbert Menzer a retired restaurateur and his friend Mr Roland Klemp a photographer. This biennial contest started in 2010 during the build of his first house, inspired by the strange fusions of head protection worn by the builders at the build site. Both gentlemen are from Germany, and responsible for creating this contest, organising the event and putting up the prize money, which nearly totalled Ksh 500,000/- this year, not an easy thing on an island with very limited resources, so of course this event has contributed greatly to the Lamu economy and environment by bringing in tourists, creating a sense of community and excitement around the festival and cleaning up the beaches and oceans in their vicinity.

The brief given to the entrants was that the hat should be made from found materials so the contest hats were created from items like chewing gum wrappers, found lighters, flip flops, plastic bottles, cement bags, plastic pipes, nylon bags, bones, shells, plastic, wires, palm leaves, fabrics, coral, there was even a very lovely hat made from egg shells.