On Thursday, November 7th, G.A.S. Lagos hosted My Journey in Art, an artist talk and interactive drawing workshop led by hen-resident and ART X Diaspora Prize winner Shabu Mwangi. While the word "journey" often evokes thoughts of physical movement, for Shabu, it represents personal growth, transformative experiences, and impactful change. Throughout the evening, Shabu offered a glimpse into his artistic evolution, sharing the inspiration behind his recent work, the phases of his creative process, and his unwavering commitment to using ​​​art as a medium for social change. 

Join us at G.A.S. Lagos for École du Festival, a collaborative and experimental Study Day focused on re-examining and reactivating the cultural, political, and artistic legacies of pan-African festivals. Organized in the framework of G.A.S. Foundation‘s Annotations programme, the Study Day serves as a site for critical dialogue between artists and researchers working on pan-African festivals and interested publics. 

G.A.S. is excited to welcome back Ofem Ubi, a multidisciplinary artist and recipient of the G.A.S. Foundation's Annual Fellowship Award. As one of the inaugural awardees in 2022, he returns for an eight-week residency to explore creative possibilities at the G.A.S. Farm House in Ijebu. Working across photography, film, and literature, Ofem’s practice focuses on experimenting with participation and collaboration, creating spaces that foster audience engagement and contribution.

Kosisochukwu Nnebe, an artist, writer and an awardee of G.A.S. Foundation's annual fellowship, joins us for a seven-week residency at the G.A.S. Farm House in Ijebu. Her multifaceted practice spans sculpture, installation, photography, film, performance, sound, textiles, and multidisciplinary research. Kosisochukwu's work critically examines how culinary practices and food can function as counter-archives – what Brett Kashmere’s defines as “incomplete and unstable repositories” – that can challenge official narratives and open us up to subaltern perspectives. A central focus of her current research is cassava, particularly its historical use as poison with which to resist colonial oppression in the Caribbean.

Join us at G.A.S. Lagos for a free screening of Ebrohimie Road: A Museum of Memory, a documentary by Kola Tubosun and Tunde Kelani. This powerful film explores how a small campus bungalow at the University of Ibadan became a pivotal site in Nigeria’s history, where literary icon Wole Soyinka was arrested during the Civil War.

The G.A.S. Library and Picton Archive, founded in 2022, houses over 1,500 volumes generously donated by Emeritus Professor John Picton and Sue Picton. Focused on the visual arts of Sub-Saharan Africa and its diaspora, this vital collection, built over six decades, is an open resource for residents and researchers at G.A.S. Lagos. With the support of our community, the archive continues to grow, preserving the Picton legacy and enriching knowledge of African art and history.

To conclude his six-week residency, Misheck Masamvu invited guests to his studio at the G.A.S. Farm House in Ijebu, where he spent most of his time developing a new body of work for his upcoming solo exhibition amidst the rich agricultural landscape. During this intimate gathering, Misheck presented a walkthrough of the works on canvas he developed throughout his residency, sharing insights into his creative process.

As we eagerly anticipate the start of Lagos Art Week at the end of October, we are thrilled to announce the arrival of Theophilus Imani, who will join us at G.A.S. Lagos until November 8, 2024. Theo’s residency sits within the framework of the Annotations Programme. A visual researcher based in Verona, Italy, Theo’s practice primarily focuses on the representation of the Black body within diasporic visual culture, particularly in the Italian context. 

G.A.S. Foundation is excited to introduce our second resident to join us this art season, Liz Kobusinge, a Ugandan researcher and multidisciplinary artist embarking on an immersive four-week residency in Lagos as part of the Annotations Programme - a six-month project that explores major African cultural festivals and their dual nature as historic events and repositories of postcolonial pan-African encounters.

This autumn, G.A.S. Foundation celebrates four alumni making strides in exhibitions and project debuts that highlight the influence of their residencies in Lagos. Tobi Onabolu's evocative video collage Ojú-Inu premieres in London, blending live action and soundscape to explore media's impact on consciousness. Karl Ohiri and Riikka Kassinen’s Abi Morocco Photos: Spirit of Lagos opens at Autograph London, showcasing the legacy of a renowned Lagos studio. Miriam Bettin’s Grow It, Show It! at Museum Folkwang interrogates hair as a symbol of identity and resistance, while Rafael Kouto's Circular Heroes project on upcycling debuts at Photo Vogue Festival 2025 in Milan. Each project reflects deep engagement with Nigerian culture, history, and aesthetics.

G.A.S. Foundation’s 2024-25 residency season launched with a dynamic cohort of multidisciplinary practitioners. ⁠Ana Ogunsanya explored her Nigerian-British heritage through Indigenous textile practices, while Phokeng Setai reimagined scaffolding as a site for public art in Lagos. ⁠Meanwhile, Alexandra Martens Serrano engaged with the intersection of quantum technologies and natural ecologies. Misheck Masamvu spent time at the G.A.S. Farm House developing new works that were informed by the Nigerian cultural landscape. ⁠The season continues with ART X Prize winner Shabu Mwangi, who is deepening his exploration of identity and power dynamics ahead of his presentation at the 9th edition of the fair.⁠
⁠