In September last year, a white wall at the FNB Art Joburg in Johannesburg, South Africa became one of the most important works to come out of the art fair. The wall occupied what should have been a booth for hFactor and 16/16, both from Lagos, Nigeria. The two institutions, in response to a series of violent attacks against foreign nationals in South Africa, had just pulled out from the fair, although not without letting their feelings known. Together with artist Sheila Chukwulozie, 16/16's owner and creative director Tushar Hathiramani made a joint statement on the last-minute walkout, which they wrote on the said wall. It read, "Thanks, xenophobia."
It was a message that really spoke to Tushar, a third-generation Indian immigrant living and working in Lagos with his sister, Sanya, who is also in charge of 16/16 as its Managing Partner. Under the 16/16 umbrella, Tushar and Sanya have been facilitating Lagos' most creative minds. It is an art gallery, a co-working office, a creative hub, an exhibition venue and, most recently, a restaurant called Thai Thai.
"[16/16] is this really cool place in a residential building," Tushar explained. "Just by being there, it challenges so many notions of space and how space is utilized, especially in an informal economy that Lagos gives us. It is an airbnb and a creative incubator space. In essence, that's just kind of a fancy language for 'I had a space, and then I filled it with all the things that I love.'" The siblings never thought they'd be here, especially since they came from, what they called, "a family of industrialists” and Tushar had been working "a stable job" before quitting and planning what would later become 16/16.
"[The space] was so lame, honestly, when we started," Sanya said. "And he saw so much more of what the space could be. I think the defining characteristic is 'Evolution,' because that's all that's happened since we began." 16/16 has also been helping local creatives to evolve by opening doors for often-overlooked grassroots artists, providing them with a workshop space and running a residency program.
"More than anything, now it's a space for ideas," said Sanya. "So, come tell us what your idea is, let's see how we can give you the resources to explore that. So that we're able to add more not just to our surrounding area, but to the community as well."
"I think everything's just been about community, actually," Tushar agreed. "I think my biggest thing is about building local infrastructure. It started with two spaces and now we have four... Space should be used to challenge things, right? Humans are just territorial. So you have this space, and you build the confidence with the sapce, but then you now go out, you know. The idea is to move out as well. We're trying to walk on the streets now. Imagine 16/16 on the streets!"
