Yinka Shonibare plans ambitious artist residency programme in Nigeria
Shonibare: British-born, Lagos-raised © Royal Academy of Arts. Photo: Marcus Leith
The British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare is planning to launch an artist residency programme across two sites in Nigeria: one in Lagos and the other in the rural area of Ijebu in Ogun State. He hopes that it will be “up and running” in time for the Art X Lagos fair in November 2021.
Called the Guest Artists Space (G.A.S.) Foundation, the Lagos residency will be located on the Lekki peninsula to the east of Lagos city. Drawing on the idea of Shonibare’s Guest Projects initiative, which offers artists an opportunity to work in his London studio for a month, Yinka’s aim with G.A.S. is to bring together established and emerging artists. “I want to build an infrastructure for international artists to go to Nigeria and learn from local artists, and for artists on the ground to learn from international artists,” he says.
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