The Yinka Shonibare Foundation would like to express its sincere condolences to the family of George Floyd and everyone affected by his brutal murder.
The Yinka Shonibare Foundation will continue to work to address the fundamental structural inequalities that culminated in the death of Mr. Floyd and many more, as a result of racial violence and economic inequities.
We believe that we must all work to make black lives matter by making structures matter. With our employment practices, procurement practices, training practices and basic principles of diversity and inclusion, these can be achieved.
The Yinka Shonibare Foundation plans to create a programme of artists residencies that will specifically connect African American artists and African diaspora artists to their African Heritage by bringing them to Nigeria and creating networks within the African continent.
We, as a matter of principle, do not consider racism a short term problem but, instead, wish to address the long term structural issues of social and economic inequalities. We will do this by collaborating with a network of like-minded individuals, organisations and foundations across the globe.
Yinka Shonibare