From an exceptional group of five finalists, our esteemed selection committee has selected one artist as the winner of the 2026 ANNA Award. We are proud to announce that this year’s ANNA Award winner is… Mankebe Seakgoe!

Mankebe Seakgoe’s win marks an important recognition of an artist whose work feels like dappled sunlight projecting images of something new. Of an artist who invites slowness, asking the viewer to be still enough for another rhythm of understanding to emerge," writes Lindi Mngxitamaa in her piece for Latitudes.

"This moment feels like a significant milestone in my career and its growth, especially because I’ve only been practising as a full-time artist from the beginning of this year,” says Mankebe.

Mankebe Seakgoe (b. 1998) is a Johannesburg-based multidisciplinary artist born in Pietersburg, Limpopo. In 2019 she completed her BFA at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. Her practice is a continuous exploration of language, emotion, and the nuanced spaces that exist between comprehension and feeling. Seakgoe’s work seeks to move beyond conventional communication, inviting audiences into a realm where affect and intuition take precedence over literal understanding.

Seakgoe’s process, often likened to André Breton’s concept of “dictation of thought in the absence of all control,” is deeply intuitive. Beginning with meditation, Seakgoe allows her ideas to surface freely, often translating them into charcoal works, canvas compositions, or sculptural forms. This approach underlines her belief in art as a tool for deeper understanding—both of the self and of shared human experience, seeking ever more profound ways to communicate the inexpressible.

Her debut solo exhibition, This is not piano…, was presented by RESERVOIR (2026). In 2025, Seakgoe presented a solo project with BKhz at the Investec Cape Town Art Fair, titled The Invisible Man’s Herbarium.

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Our audience has spoken!

Yasmeen is a Sudanese artist, born in 1992 in Qatar and currently based in Muscat, Oman. A passionate creator, she graduated with a Bachelor's degree in painting from Sudan University College of Fine and Applied Arts in 2014. Her artistic practice centres on the emotional and spiritual connections between humanity, nature, and the self. Deeply influenced by her journey and the universal human experience, Yasmeen’s work reflects themes of identity, resilience, and transformation. She explores the complexities of displacement, memory, and the human spirit’s capacity to endure and evolve.

In her creative process, Yasmeen views the canvas as a space of infinite possibilities, engaging in a meditative and intuitive approach that allows figures and forms to naturally emerge. Living in diverse cultural environments—from Qatar to Sudan to Oman has influenced Yasmeen’s art, as she weaves together contrasting elements like light and shadow, nature and interior spaces to reflect the interconnectedness of all things. Her work transcends the ordinary, inviting viewers into a dreamlike world that offers a reflection on life’s unpredictability and the shared narratives of humanity. Through her work, Yasmeen aims to speak to the core of human experience, reminding us that we are all part of a larger, ever-evolving picture.