In just two years, the G.A.S. Library and Picton Archive has grown into a rich collection of nearly 2,000 cultural research materials. This incredible achievement was made possible by generous book donations and financial support from our patrons, friends, and wider community. We are so proud to announce our first monthly library update, recapping the latest developments in the life of the G.A.S Library and Picton Archive.

In conclusion of her 8-week-long residency, G.A.S. Foundation's 2023 Fellowship recipient, Amanda Iheme, presents Ugwu-001, a reflection on her residency research and experiences. Drawing from the Igbo word "Ugwu," meaning "Dignity," this event divulges the core of Amanda's study, which is rooted in a rigorous examination of Nigeria's affordable housing crisis.

Only six months following his Tiwani-sponsored residency at G.A.S. Foundation, Gareth Nyandoro has launched a solo exhibition at Tiwani Contemporary, titled Pfumvudza. The exhibition presents Nyandoro's personal engagement with the concept of pfumvudza (meaning early shoots, to bloom or thrive), and the name of the 2020 Zimbabwean government-sanctioned programme funded by the UN, advocating citizen self-sufficiency, to help mobilize, train and support families and small crop growers to implement conservation agriculture to restore, and renew the fertility of soil, to grow plots of maize, millet, and wheat to mitigate food insecurity and the decline of large-scale industrial production.

In March G.A.S. Foundation welcomed the first two residents supported through a new partnership with RCA BLK, the Royal College of Art Association of Black Students, Alumni & Friends. Practitioners Remi Kuforiji and Graeme Smith were selected following an open call in 2023 for an exceptional early/mid-career artist who is an RCA BLK member; and a research-based proposal from the wider RCA BLK community.

This event orchestrates a crucial encounter for performing artists from Q-dance Studio at the G.A.S. Foundation, focusing on a three-hour workshop facilitated by Dawit L Petros. Its core objective is to decode and demystify the institutional and professional frameworks that shape contemporary arts practice. This initiative is designed to empower artists by enhancing their understanding of formal structures and processes prevalent in the arts industry, thereby aligning their creative pursuits with professional standards and expectations.