The Swiss Arts Council promotes contemporary art and culture for national interest on behalf of the federal government. Its tasks, outlined in the Culture Promotion Act, are carried out independently. Active across disciplines except film, the council advocates for transdisciplinary artistic practices. It supports the creation and dissemination of Swiss art, fosters cultural exchange, provides stimuli for contemporary artistic development, and champions equal opportunity and sustainability in creating favorable conditions for artists and cultural practitioners.

To mark their return to G.A.S. Lagos, Raymond Pinto will be hosting Bridging Wildlife Conservation and Creative Expression, a panel discussion with the Green Fingers Foundation. Guided by their ethnographic and anthropological fascination with Yoruba material culture, Raymond forged a connection with wildlife conservation while researching the Yoruba tradition of Gelede, where masks held paramount significance. Notably, they gained access to several masks, including the Yale University Museum of Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Gelede mask featuring pangolin figurines—the most trafficked mammal today. This exploration led Raymond to collaborate with the Green Fingers Foundation wildlife conservation NGO in Lagos, situated in Lekki. In this initiative, Raymond seeks to raise awareness about this crucial species integral to Nigeria's ecosystem.

Nolan Oswald Dennis, a versatile artist working across disciplines, is making a highly anticipated comeback to G.A.S. Lagos, following their initial research residency in January 2023. Supported by the Goodman Gallery, their first foray into Nigeria explored Nigerian post-colonial art education and the landscape of Nigerian modernism. Engaging in a whirlwind of activities, including interstate trips, site visits, interviews, and cultural research, Dennis conducted reconnaissance on locations slated for the upcoming edition of the Lagos Biennial.

Returning for a residency spanning from January 25th to February 7th, 2024, Nolan is now immersing themselves in preparations for the Lagos Biennial. This incubator period serves as a crucial phase for fine-tuning the details of the pavilion they are designing, which will hold artworks by former G.A.S. Residents, Evan Ifekoya, and Raymond Pinto. Beyond Lagos, Nolan expresses a keen interest in connecting with Ibadan and the New Culture Studio. Their research agenda extends to exploring the Nsukka school, the Mbari Artists and Writers Club, and other movements that defined Nigeria's modernist era.

On Friday, January 26th, 2024, G.A.S. Lagos hosted an evening dedicated to the fusion of art and blockchain technology. Initiated by our Economists in Residence, Victor Svensson and Eric Oetterli, it brought together a panel of contributors, including specialized artists, and practitioners, working with blockchain from the Nigerian space. Together, the panel explored the opportunities within their ecosystem that can be leveraged in artistic practices.

This segment spotlights individuals at G.A.S. who have independently taken the initiative to procure funding for a Nigerian residency experience. With varying motivations like a desire to connect with the African continent, or a specific curiosity about the residency program at G.A.S., our independent residency program has attracted individuals from the Nigerian and wider African diaspora. 

Stockholm School of Economics is kicking off our 2024 calendar year at G.A.S. Foundation with a dual residency for two bachelor's thesis students. Victor Svensson and Eric Oetterli, SSE students of Retail Management, are in residence at G.A.S. this January, conducting research on cryptocurrency adoption in Nigeria. They are recipients of the Yinka Shonibare Thesis Scholarship, launched in cooperation with Art Initiative and Misum, Mistra Center for Sustainable Markets. The scholarship gives SSE students the opportunity to do a field study on-site in Nigeria. This is the sophomore edition of the scholarship residencies, with the first pair of recipients being Alexei Moore and Miranda Hagborg, who were in residence at G.A.S. in May 2023.

In our final event for the year 2023, G.A.S. Lagos was pleased to host 7 Speakers 7 Minutes, a dynamic lecture series exploring new directions in Nigerian design. Initiated by Chuka Ihonor of 9h Design Talk, in partnership with Open House Lagos, seven acclaimed figures from architecture, product design, art, and art history each took the stage for a lightning-fast, seven-minute talk. 

The evening opened up with Lani Adeoye of Studio Lani, who shared highlights from her design portfolio, highlighting how indigenous design staples have played a central role in her processes, followed up by Stefanie Adisa who shared visionary urban landscapes, highlighting silhouettes and materiality across designs. Charlotte Langhorst's lecture came from the intimate perspective of the end-user of a dynamic piece of architecture. Each speaker, in their own distinct voice, showcased a facet of the city's vibrant design DNA: a fusion of tradition and innovation, a deep connection to community, and a bold spirit pushing boundaries.

G.A.S. Foundation entered the month of November rounding up the Lagos Art Tour itinerary, and welcoming 2023’s final residents, TK Smith, Elsa James, and Alberta Whittle. Curator and cultural historian, TK Smith, was the first to arrive in Lagos for a six-week stay supported by Barnes Foundation. After several days basking in Lagos' annual Art Week, TK was joined by Essex-based artist, filmmaker, researcher, and activist Elsa James and acclaimed Barbadian-Scottish artist Alberta Whittle. All three residents began a collaborative, travel-filled stay at G.A.S. with a group trip to Benin City diligently facilitated by G.A.S. Residency Co-ordinator, Adekunle Adeboye.

On 8th December join us for Reflections, an evening of dialogue and a residency retrospective hosted by multidisciplinary artist Elsa James. Elsa's residency has taken her to the historically significant sites of Badagry, Oshogbo, and Benin City, each of which holds profound meaning both for Africans based on the continent, and those of African descent in the Caribbean.

In early December, Yinka Shonibare Foundation had the pleasure of co-hosting the six participants of the Art Exchange: Moving Image programme in London for an immersive one-week residency. This dynamic initiative, tailored for early to mid-career visual arts curators from Sub-Saharan Africa specialising in moving image projects, provided a unique space for cultural exchange and peer-led professional development. The week-long experience opened doors for engagement with various moving image collections, interactions with artists in the field, and meetings with curators across institutional, independent, and gallery backgrounds.

In July 2023, the open call for the second G.A.S. Fellowship Award was unveiled. This fully-supported opportunity welcomed emerging creative practitioners from diverse disciplines residing in the West African region. The 2023 edition specifically welcomed applications from emerging practitioners whose work is rooted in the realms of Materiality, Ecology, Food, Environment, and History in the Present.

The judging panel was impressed by the wealth of talent, the quality, and the diversity of artistic practices presented. After careful consideration of the 160 applications received, we are thrilled to announce the selection of three winners. Two of these talented individuals will be embarking on their residencies at G.A.S. Lagos, while the third will have the unique opportunity to research and create at our sister location, the G.A.S. Ecology Green Farm in Ijebu.

On the 6th of November, TK Smith, curator-in-residence at G.A.S. invited curators from across the city of Lagos, to converse over a shared meal as an opportunity to engage in open conversation about the intricacies and nuances of curatorial labor. Guests were invited to consider how curatorial practices manifest across different geographical, cultural, and economic contexts whilst responding to provocations such as: How can the curatorial community best serve its diverse audiences?