Earlier this week, we had the pleasure of welcoming Rado Ištok, a Slovak-born curator and art historian based in Prague, for a one-week research residency at G.A.S. Lagos. Currently the Curator of the Collection of Art Since 1945 at the National Gallery Prague and a PhD candidate at Charles University, Rado’s work bridges art history and curatorial practice with a focus on solidarities and exchanges between the Socialist Bloc and the Global South during the Cold War.

We are pleased to welcome Ng’onga Silupya, a Lusaka-based curator, cultural practitioner, arts administrator, and art writer, to G.A.S. Lagos for an immersive one-week research residency.  Working across performance, dance, literature, digital culture, ecology, and curatorial research, Ng’onga investigates how contemporary art and cultural heritage can help shape more habitable and equitable societies. Her practice draws on mediation, cultural and visual studies, and art history, engaging narratives and indigenous sustainable practices connected to diverse ethnic groups in Zambia and beyond.

On September 3rd, 2025, G.A.S. Lagos hosted Picturing Return: Afro-Brazilian Archives in Nigeria, an evening that traced the histories, images, and narratives of the Aguda community and their enduring presence in Nigeria. Bringing together Pelumi Odubanjo whose practice examines the historical and contemporary links between Brazil and the West African diaspora, and scholar, curator, and researcher Oludamola Adebowale, the event explored the living archive of Afro-Brazilian presence in Nigeria

The AAL Lab Convenings, titled Contemporary Art and Archive Practices in Context, are a series of public events that bring together the African Arts Libraries Lab (AAL Lab), its Affiliates Network, and wider audiences to engage in research-sharing and dialogue on contemporary art and archival practice. Informed by the conceptual threads of Re:assemblages 2025–26—Ecotones, The Short Century, Annotations, and The Living Archive—each convening features reflections from invited speakers and the AAL Lab’s inaugural cohort alongside contributions from the broader public.

We are excited to welcome Pelumi Odubanjo, a British-Nigerian curator, writer, and researcher, to G.A.S. Lagos as our last resident in August. Based between London and Glasgow, Pelumi’s practice spans photography, multidisciplinary research, curatorial work, and ecology. Currently a PhD candidate in History of Art at the University of Glasgow and a James McCune Smith Scholar, her work engages with photographic archives, artists, and cultural artefacts to explore dialogues across global Black diasporas and geographies.

In 2024, Guest Artists Space (G.A.S.) Foundation and Yinka Shonibare Foundation (Y.S.F.) were awarded a $220,000 grant from the Terra Foundation for American Art. The two-year funding supports CULTIVATION: Art, Environment & Materiality at the G.A.S. Farm House in Ikiṣẹ, offering residencies for American-based artists exploring ecology, agriculture, and sustainable material practices. The first artist in residence was Dr. Ietef Vita, who joined G.A.S. in August 2025.

From June 30th to July 11th, 2025, the G.A.S. Farm House in Ikiṣẹ hosted My Story of Food: On The Farm!, a two-week creative learning programme in partnership with the Five Cowries Arts Education Initiative (FCI). Bringing together teachers and students from St. John’s Primary School Ikiṣẹ, the programme transformed their classrooms into a collaborative space where food, art, and storytelling intertwined. Guided by Titilayo Mathias of FCI, with support from St. John’s teachers, sessions explored indigenous foods, food systems, and sustainability through hands-on workshops in doodling, stitching, and paper craft. Alongside nurturing creativity, critical thinking, and tactile skills, the programme also supported teachers with co-learning and facilitation models.

On August 29th, 2025, G.A.S. Lagos hosted Open House, featuring a film screening of Soundtrack to a Coup d’État alongside a presentation that offered a closer look into the Foundation’s mission and opportunities. The evening brought together both new and returning audiences, fostering conversation and offering deeper insight into G.A.S. Foundation’s role as a hub for artistic research, collaboration, and exchange.

Last week, we had the pleasure of welcoming Dr Ietef Vita to G.A.S. Foundation for an immersive eight-week residency. Based in the United States, Ietef is an eco-hip-hop artist, educator, and vegan chef whose work rooted in Pan-African traditions bridges music, environmental activism, and ancestral foodways. Known professionally as DJ Cavem, his multidisciplinary practice spans painting, performance, sound, music, film, photography, textiles, and ecology. He harnesses hip-hop as a catalyst for climate justice, youth empowerment, and wellness, creating projects that range from multimedia albums and food justice curricula to international workshops fusing beat-making with soil science, herbalism, and culinary arts.

We are excited to welcome Nigerian interdisciplinary artist Olufela Omokeko for an eight-week residency at G.A.S. Foundation. His practice spans performance, installation, photography, video, and research, often engaging deeply with communities to address urgent sociocultural issues. Through his work, he explores the intersections of personal and collective experience, with recurring themes of psycho-social dynamics, mortality, food insecurity, preservation, and ecological challenges.