As part of its Arts for Afghanistan initiative, ACAF mobilized its network of newly resettled Afghan artists in Europe to encourage participation in CEC Artslink’s fellowship program, which supports artists whose work broadens public understanding of pressing social, political, and environmental issues. Through this outreach, artists Yama Rahimi and Nabila Horakhsh were selected for a U.S.-based research residency, offering them the opportunity to deepen their practices by engaging with people, archives, collections, and institutions relevant to their work.

Hosted by the Magnum Foundation in New York, Yama Rahimi’s CEC Artslink residency (September 2024) centered on building meaningful connections with individuals and organizations aligned with his art practice. He initiated a collaboration with UnionDocs for a public program related to Surviving Shadows, a group exhibition exploring the psychological and cultural impact of displacement. Rahimi also advanced his project, Freedom Canvas Initiative—a nonprofit dedicated to supporting artists in exile, developed with critical input from ACAF Director and curator Leeza Ahmady. During the residency, Rahimi began work on Water and Mirror, a 60-minute video installation featuring the voices of 50 Afghan artists reflecting on their lives in Afghanistan and in exile, set against visuals of water running in bathroom sinks. As a direct outcome of the residency Rahimi met curator Maryam Ghorashi whose encouragement led to his successful proposal for Surviving Shadows, a group exhibition of works by recently displaced Afghan artists to be held in New York at Apexart in January 2026.