From 938 entries submitted across South Africa, 123 artworks were selected to come to the Pretoria Art Museum for the 2026 Sasol New Signatures exhibition and final judging.
Joining Chairperson Pfunzo Sidogi and Cate Terblanche, Sasol Curator, both of whom had been part of the regional judging process, were three guest judges, each bringing their own perspectives to the final selection: curator Storm Janse van Rensburg, artist Usha Seejarim and curator and researcher Nontobeko Ntombela. This well respected group faced the difficult task of selecting just seven award recipients: the Overall Winner, Runner-up and five Merit Award winners.
For the guest judges, seeing the selected works together offered a fascinating snapshot of what emerging artists across South Africa are exploring right now.
“The overall standard was high, and high in a way that felt deliberate,” said Ntombela. “Across the board there was a concerted effort to submit work that is technically accomplished and conceptually strong at the same time.”
Janse Van Rensburg was equally impressed by both the quality and range of the work, as well as the artists’ engagement with the world around them. “The regional representation gives us an opportunity to really get a snapshot of what young artists are doing in this moment. Art is a reflection of our time, our people and our place”.
One of the strongest observations to emerge from the judging process was the diversity of media represented in the exhibition.
Seejarim, a sculptor herself, was particularly struck by the number of three-dimensional works and artist books, while Janse Van Rensburg noted a growing confidence among young artists to experiment across different mediums. “There is definitely a dexterity with different kinds of media. Young artists are curious about what they can work with and how they can express their ideas.”
Ntombela also highlighted the growing sophistication with which artists are working with materials that have traditionally been viewed as craft or preparatory media. “Paper, wool, found material and glass in particular appeared in entries handled with such sophistication that the old separations simply dissolved,” she said.
With more than 100 works in the exhibition, selecting the final award recipients was never going to be straightforward. “The judging process was really great,” said Seejarim. “We had good, healthy discussions and differing opinions, which is always a good sign that it is a very fair process.”
For Janse Van Rensburg, those differing perspectives are part of what makes judging both challenging and valuable. “Judging is challenging because we all bring our own worldviews into the situation. We are trying to be very fair and really looking at the complexity of what is in front of us.”
Ultimately, however, the panel was united in its recognition of work that demonstrated both conceptual strength and technical accomplishment.
The Overall Winning work was praised for its innovative use of material, meticulous attention to detail and the artist’s mastery of their chosen medium. Sidogi noted that the work “speaks to the complexity of South African history through the metaphor of clothing”, while Seejarim described it as “a beautifully resolved piece” with “charm and depth”.
The Runner-up was equally compelling. “The Runner-up could have been a winning work,” said Sidogi. The panel praised the work’s poignant and evocative use of materials, with Seejarim particularly drawn to the “materiality of ochre on the blanket through strong imagery”.
Together, the winning works reflected many of the qualities that had emerged across the exhibition: thoughtful ideas, a strong sense of materiality and a confident command of medium.
While the final judging determines the award recipients, the Sasol New Signatures Visual Arts Competition is about far more than winning.
For Seejarim, competitions provide emerging artists with an important opportunity for visibility and recognition. For those who were not selected this year, Janse Van Rensburg’s advice is simple: don’t give up. “There is a long journey ahead. Acknowledgement is important along the way, but a competition like this is one place for your work to be shown and seen. There are also many other opportunities.” His final advice captures much of what the 2026 exhibition revealed about the next generation of South African artists: “Keep on pushing, keep on experimenting and never stop playing.”
Ntombela had a clear message for artists working outside South Africa’s major centres, “where you are based is no longer a disadvantage in this competition. This year, artists from Limpopo and the Eastern Cape have proved exactly that. Enter!”. And for the many artists who entered the 2026 Sasol New Signatures Visual Arts Competition, the message from the judging panel is clear: keep making, keep experimenting and keep entering.
