Competition Winners

Lesego Motsiri lived and practiced his fine arts in Bloemfontein, South Africa, where he trained for 4 years for a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of Free State. He specialised in drawing, painting, printmaking, and photography as a form of art and video art. He also experimented on the relationship between traditional art, new media and digital art.

In 2020, Motsiri’s work was selected for the Art Bank of South Africa for the TIRO YA DIATLA exhibition; and he was also selected as one of the top 13 finalists of WHAT’S THE STORY? , an international photography contest by The Budapest Diary Creative Space. In the same year, he had two online exhibitions named Intangible, Augmentation (3D virtual exhibition) and Level One (wed-page exhibition), for the Vrystaat Kunstefees. In 2016, he took part in the District Six 50th Commemoration Print Exchange hosted by the District Six Art Museum, Cape Town; as well as making it to the semi-finals of the Sasol New Signatures Art Competition.

In addition, Motsiri had a solo exhibition at the Central University of Technology Art Gallery, Bloemfontein, titled The_Black_Season_17 in 2017. The same collection of artworks was used in collaboration with Motlatsi Moeketsi Khotle (choreographer) for a two-hour theater dance production titled Black Season_17, which premiered at the Ernest Oppenheimer Theatre, Bloemfontein, in 2017 and 2018.

Lesego Motsiri was a member of the Free State Art Collective and has taken part in national exhibitions FSAC, Betwixt & Between, an online exhibition LOCKDOWN, A viral art experiment by the Free State Art Collective and the Free State Art Collective exhibition at Gallery 2 in 2021. Motsiri’s work now forms part of the National Art Bank collection and has been bought by collectors around the country.

Award-winning artist Linde Kriel was born in Vanderbijlpark, Gauteng, South Africa, but while growing up moved around all over South Africa. In 2018 he matriculated at Stellenberg High School in Durbanville. After high school he moved to Stellenbosch to study theology at the University of Stellenbosch. After a year he decided to pursue his true passion which is art. He moved to Bloemfontein in 2020 where he started studying BA Fine Arts at the University of the Free State. Currently he is a second year student.

Linde has always had a passion for art and started traditional training when he was in the third grade with high school students. Linde is a multimedia artist that wants to specialize in printmaking mediums. Outside of his studies he likes to paint at a local coffee shop where he sells his work. He works with themes like mental health, gender identity, sexuality and religion. He more recently uses his work as a tool to investigate social issues that he believes aren’t talked about enough in society.

In 2022 he entered an artwork into the Sasol New Signature art  competition. This was his first time entering any competition. He was one of the seven winners with a merit award. His work was exhibited alongside the other finalist in the Pretoria Art Museum. Currently he is working on creating a series of paintings that he is planning on showing at an informal solo exhibition at Iewers Nice in Bloemfontein.

Award-winning artist Linde Kriel was born in Vanderbijlpark, Gauteng, South Africa, but while growing up moved around all over South Africa. In 2018 he matriculated at Stellenberg High School in Durbanville. After high school he moved to Stellenbosch to study theology at the University of Stellenbosch. After a year he decided to pursue his true passion which is art. He moved to Bloemfontein in 2020 where he started studying BA Fine Arts at the University of the Free State. Currently he is a second year student.

Linde has always had a passion for art and started traditional training when he was in the third grade with high school students. Linde is a multimedia artist that wants to specialize in printmaking mediums. Outside of his studies he likes to paint at a local coffee shop where he sells his work. He works with themes like mental health, gender identity, sexuality and religion. He more recently uses his work as a tool to investigate social issues that he believes aren’t talked about enough in society.

In 2022 he entered an artwork into the Sasol New Signature art  competition. This was his first time entering any competition. He was one of the seven winners with a merit award. His work was exhibited alongside the other finalist in the Pretoria Art Museum. Currently he is working on creating a series of paintings that he is planning on showing at an informal solo exhibition at Iewers Nice in Bloemfontein.