By Henry Akubuiro
Its riveting elevation style, with an open courtyard and flowery ambience, is the first thing one notices before discovering other beauties within. 
Located on Hakeem Dickson Drive and designed by Elsie Owusu, in collaboration with Nihiniola Shonibare, G.A.S. (Guest Artist Space) is one of the latest architectural masterpieces in the upscale Oniru area, Victoria Island, Lagos, owned by art maestro, Yinka Shonibare.
Starting from this year, Guest Artist Space will throw its gate open to artists of different disciplines to spend at least a month in a residency programme to be sponsored by the Yinka Shonibare Foundation.
The legendary artist, Yinka Shonibare, 62, believes the art world needs to evolve, for there is a rich vein of talent we might lose if the status quo of the last thirty years remains as it is. “We are working with the local community, while opening doors for the next generation, equipping them to thrive, not just to survive,” he said.
The residency programme at G.A.S. isn’t just on one location, as it also has a 54-acre Ecology Green Farm at Ikise, Omu Ijebu, in the neighbouring Ogun State, which artists might alternate in the course of the residency programme. The second building, designed by Papa Omotayo of MOE, is a farm that produces crops, ranging from cassava and cashew to peppers and maize.
Shonibare informed that “it will also provide a residency space for artists, scientists, agriculturists, and researchers, and was created with sustainable infrastructure and food security for the local community in mind.”
The two facilities, he said, “are meant to offer exciting opportunities for those working in the fields of contemporary art, design, architecture, agriculture and ecology by giving space and resources to research, experiment, share, educate and develop work. Shonibare was speaking during the unveiling of G.A.S., Oniru, Victoria Island, Lagos.
“The space comes equipped with live/work units and an adaptable multi-use project and gallery space,” he added.
Meanwhile, the foundation has made a call for the inaugural G.A.S. Fellowship Awards. Three Nigerian and West African creative practitioners will qualify for the first international residency programme between May 2022 and March, 2023. While two will take place in Lagos, one will take place at G.A.S.’ sister location.
Selected fellows will enjoy a fully funded package, which include a comfortable suite, a stipend of 500 USD (N207,880) for a month and access to a wide range of resources and support.
Organisers said outcomes from the residency would vary depending on the creative practice, but might include an open studio, social media and website coverage, exhibitions, performances and public events, to be coordinated and supported by the G.A.S. team based in Lagos.
Interested emerging practitioners in all creative disciplines (sculptures, painters, architects, writers, fashion designers, thespians, etcetera) with five or less years of professional experience, desirous of a place of isolation to work and research should apply with a Pdf portfolio of 5-10 images (for video work, minimum of 3 minutes clips), a CV, a brief proposal (maximum of 500 words) showing how the residency will benefit your creative development, latest March 20, 2022, to G.A.S. (visit bit.ly/has fellowship 2022).
Shonibare has, over a decade, been running guest projects from his London studio, offering emerging artists opportunities to propose collaborations, have access to a free project space for one month – a laboratory of ideas; a testing ground for new thoughts and actions. No thanks to coronavirus pandemic, which affected open spaces worldwide, his Guest Projects, London, has morphed into a digital residency format in 2020.
The pandemic also delayed the construction and opening of the Oniru residency, a project started about three years ago. “The process of trying to build a unique facility is quite difficult. It is a learning process for us. But I see challenges as opportunities to learn,” said Shonibare, who would like other Nigerians to improve on what he has started in the area of providing residency for artists.
Visitors to Guest Artist Space, Oniru, will see an ongoing exhibition, featuring a selection of works acquired by Shonibare. The installation of photographs, sculpture, paintings, works on paper, and mixed media collage, curated by Temitayo Ogunbiyi, encourages you to navigate the space, while considering contemporary art in conversation with eclectic art from Nigerian modernism and antiquity.