The Yinka Shonibare Foundation (Y.S.F.) and Guest Artists Space (G.A.S.) Foundation have been awarded a $220,000 grant from the Terra Foundation for American Art. The two-year funding will support cultural exchange and archival preservation initiatives at the foundations’ residency sites in Ijebu and Lagos, Nigeria.
At the G.A.S. Farm House in Ikise, the grant will fund CULTIVATION: Art, Environment & Materiality, a two-year residency program. It will host 10 American-based artists, with an emphasis on those from Indigenous, African, or multicultural backgrounds. The initiative encourages interdisciplinary exploration across art, ecology, and sustainable material practices. Through direct engagement with local communities, the program aims to foster cross-cultural dialogue and collaborative inquiry.
In Lagos, the grant will establish the African Arts Libraries Lab (AAL Lab) and Conference, focusing on African and Afro-diasporic archival collections. This initiative will convene archivists, librarians, artists, and cultural institutions through a series of workshops and collaborative sessions. The program will conclude with a two-day conference exploring preservation and restitution practices, emphasizing the inclusion of underrepresented African and Afro-diasporic materials.
Both projects align with the Terra Foundation’s broader mission to challenge traditional narratives and foster equitable and inclusive practices. By facilitating interdisciplinary collaboration, the initiatives aim to expand global perspectives on American art through an African context.
The Terra Foundation for American Art, established in 1978, supports projects that broaden the understanding of American art history. With offices in Chicago and Paris, the foundation advances intercultural dialogue and promotes research through grant programs and collaborative initiatives.
