International Women Artists’ Residency was part of the international art exchange programs of Theertha that is being held regularly.  The primary objective of the International Women Artists’ Residency is to support and sustain the diverse art activities among women artists in Sri Lanka and to give opportunity to connect with the women artists working in other geographical and cultural backgrounds. The Residency provided an environment for artists to experiment, dialogue and exchange artistic knowledge and experiences. The residency focused on collaborative/ solo art projects where artists worked in response to the local environment/ context using locally available material. An exhibition was held at the end of the residency.  During the residency the participating artists were invited to an ‘Artists’ Talk’ where the artists presented their work to an audience of art students and artists. This will also be an opportunity for artists and art students interacted with the participating artists and critically engaged in discussion.  The Artists’ Talk was organized at the Sapumal Foundation, an art foundation and museum that hold a large collection of art of the Sri Lankan Modern Movement, the 43 Group.

Participating artists were Kaif Ghaznavi (Pakistan), Sabrina (India), Fathimath Zuhura,   (Maldives), Lakeesha Fernando (Sri Lanka), Sakunthala Galange (Sri Lanka) and Noeline Fernando (Sri Lanka).
The residency started from 29th July 2006 and ended on 28th August 2006. The Residency Exhibition was held from 23 to 27th August 2006 at the Goethe Institute, Colombo.

The international residency was also part of a series of activities undertaken by Theertha to strengthen the artists’ network within South Asia which  Theertha has established in collaboration with Khoj (India),  VASL (Pakistan), Britto (Bangladesh), Sutra (Nepal) and Triangle Arts Trust (UK). 
Principle sponsors for the residency were:  Hivos (The Netherlands), Ford Foundation (US).  Sponsorship for exhibition:  Goethe Institute, Colombo. Venue Sponsorship for Artists’ Talk: Sapumal Foundation.